Crash Landing
by Ilovedesserts
Summary: A/U, set in present times of Major Crimes...story refers back to The Closer Season 6, Epsiode 4 "Layover."
1. Chapter 1

**A/U story, set in present day. It has reference back to The Closer, Season 6, Episode 4, "Layover." These characters are not my own.**

The Murder Room was quiet. That was a rarity. Everyone was busy typing up their reports; they'd closed a case that morning, and now, late afternoon, everyone just wanted to finish and go home.

The sound of heels had everyone looking up. Sharon was in her office, so they knew it wasn't the sound of her walking into the room. The eyes that greeted them were that of someone they had gotten to know well over the years.

Julio glanced up at her and stood. She shook her head, "Detective Sanchez, I'm not here to see you," she replied, and all eyes got a questionable look in them. Several glanced at each other as she continued, "Lieutenant Flynn, I'm actually here to see you. May I have a word?" she smiled.

Andy looked up from where he was working. He'd seen her walk in and hadn't taken much note. Surprised, he stood, "Umm, yeah, conference room okay?" he asked.

She nodded, "That will be fine," and started walking to the room. She was familiar with the layout of the office.

Sharon glanced up at Andy walked by her office with a puzzled look. Andy shrugged his shoulders at her, also puzzled. Sharon gave him a nod, which the two of them understood. He shook his head; whatever this was, he was fine, and she didn't need to be bothered. He winked back at her.

His glance toward Sharon didn't go unnoticed, "Oh, don't worry. This doesn't need to involve Captain Raydor. She might be your boss, but this isn't something to do with work."

Andy got even more curious as he sat down, his mind racing. Paloma. That must be it. That was why Cynthia was here. Something must have happened to Paloma. He and Cynthia had worked together on that case, and now, she had some news. He just prayed it wasn't bad news. Andy sat, awaiting whatever Cynthia had to say.

"Lieutenant Flynn, I actually requested this file when I saw it was going to involve you. I know we've had a good working relationship over the last several years, and I wanted to be the one to tell you this," Cynthia started.

Andy leaned forward, eyebrows raised, even more intrigued, "So, this doesn't involve Paloma?" he asked, glancing up and noticing Sharon watching the interaction. He smiled at her, and she glanced back down at her paperwork.

"No," Cynthia said with a small smile, "She's doing fine, well in fact. I heard her adopted parents allowed Gus to speak with her on the phone. That's good."

Andy smiled at the mention of Gus, "They did. He was so happy," he continued to smile, remembering that dinner conversation a couple weeks ago. Rusty and Gus had made all of them dinner, and Gus couldn't stop talking about his five-minute phone call with Paloma. "So, what's this regarding?" Andy asked.

Cynthia folded her arms, "Lieutenant, did you know a Linda from several years ago, around 2011?"

Andy had a startled expression on his face, "Linda? Ahh," he started to think.

"She was a flight attendant," Cynthia added to help refresh his memory.

Andy closed his eyes and sighed, "Yes, I knew Linda, briefly. Provenza and I met her and her friend on a flight where we were escorting a suspect home. That was a mess," he added shaking his head.

Cynthia nodded and continued, "She did a short stint for drug possession and was released. She was just rearrested for drugs again, and this time it looks like she is going away for quite awhile. Lieutenant, I'm here to talk about Ella, her daughter," she explained and took a deep breath, "your daughter, Lieutenant."


	2. Chapter 2

Andy's head flew up, "My daughter?" he asked, looking panicked at Cynthia. He could feel his blood pressure rising. Cynthia noticed it too, and looked around, spotting bottled waters on the bookshelf. She quickly got up and got him one, twisting the top, and handing it to him.

"Here," she encouraged, "I heard about your collapse a few months ago, a pinched nerve, right? Are you okay? Should I get you an aspirin?"

Andy waved her off and had a sip of the water. He glanced up to see Sharon looking back at him worried. He shook his head and motioned for her to come in. Cynthia turned to note where he was looking and looked back at Andy.

"Lieutenant, we don't have to involve Captain Raydor in this yet. Certainly, we have things to discuss, but your work here, well, if you decide to take some time, we can talk to her together later," she encouraged.

Andy gave her a nervous smile, "Oh, you don't know the half of it," he grumbled. "She's definitely involved in this," he sighed, as Sharon walked in, looking completely worried. Andy and Sharon didn't lie to each other, and he wasn't about to start now. She'd gotten on him in the past for not telling her when he was in pain, both during his "dust up with the car," and with the pinched nerve, and he'd agreed never to do that. Not letting her in on his pain and not telling her about an apparent child were two completely different things, and he wasn't going to lie to her or hide things from her.

"Andy, what's the matter?" she asked, almost rushing to his side, "Is it your heart? Should I call the ambulance?"

Both Cynthia and Andy started to speak, and Andy raised his hand, "Sharon, I'm fine. Heart is fine," he gave her a small smile, trying to reassure her. He patted her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, a move Cynthia noticed and had her raising her eyebrows. "While my heart is fine, there's something Cynthia is here to discuss that you need to hear. She had just started when I motioned for you to come in. Here, sit down," he motioned to the chair next to him.

Sharon still wasn't convinced, "You're sure you are okay? Andy, don't scare me like this again."

Andy squeezed her shoulder as she started to sit, "There's an issue. It's not my heart, but you need to hear this too," he said again, turning back to Cynthia. "Cynthia, I asked Sharon in here before you continue because this will affect her. Not as my boss," he said, letting that sink in for Cynthia. Cynthia raised her eyebrows at Andy, "but as my family. Cynthia, we live together. We just bought a new house and moved in over Christmas. Rusty loves his new garage apartment," Andy smiled slightly.

Cynthia looked between them. She was surprised she hadn't figured it out before now, but it made sense, "Captain, Lieutenant, I didn't know. Congratulations. Rusty is very lucky to have parents like you both, and I say you both because Lieutenant, I know you've been involved in his care and upbringing since the start. Now, Lieutenant, are you sure you want me to continue with Captain Raydor here?"

Andy glanced at Sharon, who was completely clueless as to the conversation. Her expression showed she truly had no idea for Cynthia's visit, "Yes, Cynthia, please continue," he said as he gripped Sharon's hand. She returned the squeeze, and Andy brought their hands up and rested them on the table, intertwined. "Let's hear it."

Cynthia glanced between them, not sure she herself was ready to proceed. She hated this part of the job, and she especially hated it when like now, she knew it was going to make a mess of a good thing. Cynthia never knew how people would respond to news such as this; sometimes, she felt people took it well, only to have them fall apart later. Cynthia took a deep breath, "Lieutenant, Captain, as I was telling the Lieutenant here, I am here about a five and half year-old little girl, Ella."

Sharon's eyebrows rose, and she glanced at Andy, whom she now noticed had gone pale. She squeezed his hand, and he glanced at her. He squeezed back and nodded toward Cynthia.

"Captain, I just told Lieutenant Flynn that Ella is his daughter," Cynthia said with a sympathetic smile.

"His daughter?" Sharon's total shock evident. She yanked her hand back in frustration and turned to him, "What is going on? Andy, what is this about? Daughter?"

Andy put his hand on her arm. He could calm her like she could calm him. Usually, she didn't need calming, but right now, he couldn't imagine the shock and pain she was feeling. He felt it too, but on a different level. Andy took hold of her hand, didn't say a word, and clasped their fingers together again, nodding for Sharon to let Cynthia speak.

"Lieutenant Flynn knew a woman named Linda back in 2010-2011," Cynthia started to say.

Andy held up his hand, "Actually, I knew her once. August 2010," he commented, turning to Sharon, "It was that flight attendant case with the Chief, remember? I know you heard about it because we talked about it after I got stabbed a few months later, remember? You stopped by my house to see if I was okay after I got out of the hospital, telling me I needed to stop getting myself into cases, and we talked about this one. Flight attendants smuggling drugs, remember?"

Sharon nodded and looked down, "Yes, I remember the case. I remember that people kept playing cow sounds every time you or Provenza walked into our office for months," she chuckled. "Okay, so how is this all tied together?"

Andy looked down, "Sharon, I'm not proud to say this, but well, I slept with Linda, one of the flight attendants. It was one time. In fact, we barely got in the door," he added, "Heck, I'm surprised anything came of it. We'd just dropped off Provenza and his date, and Linda lived another block away. She wanted to just stay in the car, but I told her I was too old for that. We got into her condo and not much past the front door. We weren't even there 15 minutes before Provenza called about the dead body," he muttered, sighing, Crap," he put his hand over his face.

Sharon looked down and couldn't look at him. She shook her head.

"Wait a minute!" Andy sat up, "I had a vasectomy after my daughter, Nicole was born. This can't be my kid!"

Sharon's head popped up and looked at Andy, "That's right," she added, "you did."

Cynthia watched the two speak and as they glanced toward her to confirm things, she gave them a sad smile, "Lieutenant, she's yours. We checked her DNA. I always do that before getting to this point. You should both remember that much. I don't know what you had done before, Lieutenant, but she's definitely yours."

Andy sat there, stone-faced, not sure what fact was leaving him speechless now. Not only did he have to deal with the fact his vasectomy he thought was okay wasn't, he was now dealing with the effect of that vasectomy not being successful.

Andy sighed again, and Sharon looked away. He heard her whimper, and she pulled her hand away from his to move her hair. Truth be told, he was sure she was wiping away tears. He pulled her hand back to his, and clutched it tighter than he had. He nudged for Sharon to look at him. It took her a few seconds, but she finally did. Her eyes were swelling with water in them, but she nodded at him and turned back to Cynthia.

"Go on," Sharon nodded.

Cynthia nodded too, a sympathetic smile, "Ella's DNA is a match to yours, Lieutenant, so she is your daughter. As I first said, Linda was arrested again for drugs, and this time it is more serious. She's going away for 15-20 years. Since her arrest, we have had Ella in foster care. Her grandparents would like to take custody of her, but well, we were doing our jobs too, and Linda had mentioned some cop was her dad. So, we ran a check to see if any of that was true. I guess Linda doesn't like her parents and doesn't want Ella with them. So, you came back on that DNA check, and here we are. Linda ended up striking a deal last time, and she only served a year. Ella was born in while Linda was in jail; they never transferred her to prison because she'd discovered her pregnancy. Ella's grandparents were given emergency custody the first time, and Linda got out shortly after. She's had Ella since then, and she's been arrested for two minor offenses. Lieutenant, Captain, Ella hasn't had much of a stable home, and she's spent most of her life shuffled between her grandparents and mom. Also, from what Ella has told us, Linda had several men in and out of the apartment, and Ella said he mom always had sleepovers. This poor thing; she's seen quite a bit in her short life."

Sharon glanced at Andy, unable to speak, and she shook her head. Andy agreed. This was a mess, a huge one. He was at the center of it, and more importantly, his irresponsibility from years' ago, was coming to light again.

Andy sighed and put his hand over his face. Sharon still sat there, speechless, staring at her hand intertwined with Andy's hand on the table. Sharon found her voice, "Cynthia, why are you here then?"

Cynthia gave another sympathetic smile and a nod, "Well, seems as if you have a choice to make, Lieutenant, and now," as Cynthia looked at Sharon, "now, Captain, I guess you'll be involved in that too."

Sharon nodded, and Andy, who was still looking away, speechless, sighed loudly, "Cynthia, what do you need from me? I'm guessing you want me to take her?"

Cynthia looked over at Andy until she caught his eye, "Lieutenant, I've watched you put families back together here. I guess this is a chance for you, a second chance at life, maybe. You have two options, really. You can apply for custody of Ella, or you can allow her grandparents full custody. You will have to do something, though, because now that we've identified you as her father, well, your rights are involved. Neither decision is to be taken lightly. Ella, unlike Linda, loves her grandparents. She keeps lashing out at her foster family right now, telling them how much she wants her grandparents. So, you can allow her to go with them, or," she paused.

"Or?" Sharon asked, trying to get to the bottom of this discussion.

"Or," Cynthia continued, "you fight them for custody as her biological father. Either way, this goes to family court, and as of today, Lieutenant, you have a problem to fix."


	3. Chapter 3

Cynthia finished speaking with Sharon and Andy and agreed to stop by their home the next day. There was a lot to discuss, and Cynthia felt it was better to let them have a little time. No matter what, this was a big decision, affecting many people.

Sharon didn't say anything as Cynthia was agreeing to come by their home the next evening, and once Cynthia had finished and was collecting her paperwork, Sharon got up from her seat and walked out of the room. She walked across the Murder Room and out the door. The team had been sitting there, trying to figure out everything, and with Sharon's departure, they were speechless. They were left with the sound of her heels echoing on the floor.

"What do you think is going on in there?" Amy asked. "Anyone?" she asked again when no one responded.

"Nolan, you have the best view," Tao added, "what can you tell us?"

"Well, meeting started with just the Lieutenant. He spoke to her for a few minutes, then he waved the Captain in. Man, I don't know. It looks serious," he added, "No smiles or anything."

"Well, let's think this through," Julio joined in, "Can't be about Rusty. She wouldn't have started with Flynn. Maybe about Paloma? Flynn was the one working that case."

Others nodded, thinking that seemed to be the most logical, but Buzz and Provenza weren't sure, "I don't know," Buzz shook his head, "that just doesn't seem to fit. Look at her," Buzz tried to nod toward Sharon without drawing a lot of attention, "Something has rattled her."

Provenza remained quiet through all of this. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something was definitely wrong. The team grew silent again when they saw Sharon open the door to the conference room, and without a word, walk out of the Murder Room. Not a word. Not a glance. She just walked out. They quickly looked back and saw Andy still speaking with Cynthia; he was nodding. Then, without more than a wave to the whole team, Cynthia was gone. Provenza watched Andy; he had his arms resting on the back of the chair, head bowed. Something was most definitely going on.

"Get back to work," Provenza said quietly, "whatever it is, it's big, and I think we'll hear about it eventually."

The team nodded and tried to refocus. That was hard when the boss had just walked out and another was obviously shaken.

Provenza kept watching Andy from the cover of his crossword puzzle. Andy stayed like that, hunched over for a few minutes before he stood, collected himself, and walked into Sharon's office through the side door from the conference room. Provenza kept watching him. Andy rarely walked through her office that way, and he especially didn't do it when she wasn't there. He continued to watch as Andy went to her desk, opened her large drawer where she kept her purse, collected it, shut down her computer, collected it, grabbed her suit jacket, and then switched off the lights. His movements had attracted the attention of everyone else again, who really didn't have much work to do. They were all ready to go home, but who could go home yet? Something was going on, and they couldn't leave now. Once Andy had switched off the lights, he went out Sharon's other side door to his desk, grabbed his keys, and turned to the group. He was full of Sharon's stuff in one hand and his car keys in the other. He and Provenza locked eyes. Provenza's questioning glance had Andy nod. Like Andy and Sharon, Andy and Provenza had a knack about them; they could read each other well without speaking. Provenza stood up, put on his coat, and turned to Mike, "Mike, I'll be right back."

Provenza knew it would have been useless to tell the team to go home at this point. Who was he kidding? No one was going anywhere until they got some answers.

Tao nodded, and the team watched as Andy walked across the room, silent, and Provenza then fell in step behind him. Nothing was said. Once they left the room, everyone finally took a breath. No one realized the tension in the air until Andy and Provenza walked out.

"What is going on?" Amy asked again.

Tao shook his head, "I don't know, but we're about to find out."

"Think so, Lieutenant?" Wes spoke up. "Do you think they'll talk?"

"Without a doubt," Mike said, turning back to his computer, "and, I can guarantee from the Captain and Andy, it's not good."

Provenza caught up to Andy at the elevator. Andy was standing there, holding all of Sharon's things and still silent. His head was bowed, and he was clearly in deep thought. The elevator doors opened, and both men got on.

It was only a couple of seconds before Provenza spoke, "Well, how bad? I can have my suspicions with Cynthia involved, but want to tell me?"

Andy, standing next to Provenza shook his head and bowed his head as he let out a sigh, "It's bad."

Provenza nodded, "How old?" cutting right to the chase, "Who?"

Andy just shook his head as he glanced toward Provenza, "Flight attendant, Linda. Remember? Drug smuggling case? The flight attendants you couldn't wait to pick up."

Provenza looked up, catching Andy's eyes for the first time, "Linda? Really? Never would have guessed her. Wait? When? I called you almost immediately after you dropped us off."

Andy grunted, "Yeah, well, not soon enough, apparently. She was a crazy one. We barely got into her place. She was all over me," he shook his head, "Unbelievable."

Provenza stood there processing everything, and his eyes got wide, "Wait, didn't you take care of things a long time ago?"

Andy glanced at him, a scowl on his face, "Apparently not," he hissed, "I thought so."

Provenza cringed, "Crap," he muttered as he shook his head. The elevator came to a stop, and the doors opened. "That case," he shook his head, "the two of them," he shook his head, "not the brightest ones."

Andy stepped out, looking back at Provenza. Provenza spoke, "So?" he questioned.

"Her name is Ella. She's five and a half. Idiot Linda got herself arrested again for drugs. She's going away for 15-20. She never said a word about Ella, and now, we have to decide what we want to do. I haven't seen her since she was hauled away in handcuffs, never thought I'd ever have to deal with her again. Grandparents want her," Andy said gruffly.

Provenza closed his eyes and sighed. He opened them to see his best friend in quite a state. Provenza nodded to him, "Go. Find her. Talk. She'll be okay with it all eventually," he encouraged. "She loves you; you love her."

Andy just nodded to Provenza and turned to walk away. Provenza could only hope things would be okay, but this was the type of thing that could break anyone.


	4. Chapter 4

**I finished editing this early! Enjoy!**

Andy walked to his car slowly and as expected, Sharon was standing there, well, slumped against the car. He sighed and nodded to himself that at least he knew her well enough to know where she'd gone. He finished walking the few feet to his car. Sharon just stood there, back against the passenger side back door, arms folding, looking down at really nothing. Andy walked up, unlocked the door, and opened the door for her. He pulled her into his embrace, and after a brief moment of Sharon's tension, he felt her relax into him. He held her. She wrapped her arms around him, and he kissed her head. They didn't speak; not a word was uttered. He pulled back and put his forehead against hers, even though her eyes were trained on the ground. He kissed her head again, and then he turned her to help her into the car. Once he got her situated, he put her things in the backseat and got into the driver's seat himself. As he pulled out of the parking space, he clasped her hand in his, glad she wasn't pulling back. Once he got onto the road, he turned the car toward something, anything.

They had bene in the car 20 minutes, and Sharon hadn't said a word. Because of that, Andy hadn't said a word either. Andy still held Sharon's hand; he hadn't let go of it, and she hadn't pulled away. He pulled into their destination and parked. He let go of her hand as he squeezed it and got out of the car. Without a word, he opened her door, and he held his hand out to help her out. Sharon went through the motions of getting out of the car, not breaking the grasp she had now on Andy's hand. He tugged on her to follow him, and they walked inside.

Andy had picked an out of the way restaurant. He'd thought about where to go; he didn't want to go home to discuss this right now for fear of Rusty popping in while they were talking. He didn't want to potentially ruin any of their favorite restaurants with this discussion either, depending on how it went. So, he took Sharon to one they'd been to a few times, a hole in the wall diner, situated near the beach, but not busy like many places.

Andy followed Sharon to their table, his hand resting on her back. Even after they were seated, she didn't speak. She sat, gazing at the menu, Andy hoped, at least. The waitress appeared, and for the first time in almost an hour, Sharon finally said something, "Just water," she looked up when asked what she wanted to drink.

"Coffee please," Andy nodded to the girl, and Sharon raised her eyebrows. She appeared to be coming out of her shock.

Andy shrugged as he looked back at her, "I figured we wouldn't be sleeping well tonight. A little caffeine couldn't' hurt now."

Sharon just nodded with a small hum as she looked back at her menu. The silence resumed. Normally, the two would discuss what they were going to order, coming up with a game plan of sorts about sharing their food. Not tonight. Andy didn't say anything; Sharon didn't offer. When the waitress reappeared with their drinks, Sharon put in her order: minestrone soup with a half turkey sandwich. Andy nodded; Sharon always liked their soup here. He did too. He opted for the clam chowder with a veggie wrap, knowing Sharon liked both of those things. He liked her selections too. After all his medical issues, he was back to at least eating turkey. He wasn't eating a ton of meat, but things like turkey, he had added to his diet. Once the waitress left, Andy looked at Sharon and finally met her eyes. He gave her a small smile, but he could see the hurt and anguish in her eyes. Sharon was fidgety, and he put his hands on top of hers on the table. He grasped them again, as he had in the car, and there they sat. They sat just holding hands and looking at each other until they lost track of time. It could have been a few seconds; it could have been a few minutes. They didn't know.

Andy finally broke the silence, "Sharon I-" he started to say. Sharon shook he head and looked down.

Andy tugged on her hand, hoping to get her to look up. She didn't, so he continued, "Sharon, I know nothing I can say will make this mess go away, make it any better. Sharon, I'm sorry," he sighed. Andy rubbed his free hand over his face as Sharon continued to look down. She was still holding his hand, so she wasn't disgusted with him, at least he hoped, "Sharon, as much as I'd like to ignore this, we can't. Yes, I say we because this is a decision for us to make together, something that affect both of us, as well as others. Whatever it is, please say it. I can take it, but what I can't take is you being so disappointed in me that you are disgusted by me."

Sharon looked up finally, her eyes meeting Andy's, "I'm not disgusted by you," she said, one of the first things she'd actually said to him, aside from the coffee comment, now in a couple of hours.

Andy nodded, "Well, I am. I am disgusted with myself," he sighed shaking his head. That seemed to pull Sharon out of her state.

"I imagined this sort of thing would happen with Jack," she said softly, shaking her head, with her eyes closed, "I always imagined-prepared myself-for the day someone would come knocking on my door looking for Jack, telling me they were looking for their long-lost father. I can't tell you the number of times I thought that would happen. I was even ready for it, I guess. I just didn't think that would be you," she sighed as she glanced out the window.

Andy nodded with a grimace, "Yeah, just another way I'm like Jack. Worse," he shook his head, "Jack didn't even mess up this badly."

Sharon squeezed Andy's hands, which she was still holding, "Andy," she said sharply, "you are not Jack. You didn't cheat on someone for this to happen. I was simply pointing out that I have had a similar scenario go through my head about this. Was it irresponsible? Yes? Was it stupid? Obviously. What were you thinking?-You weren't. Were you married or otherwise involved? No. The point is, it happened, and we have to deal with that now."

Andy looked at her, almost confused, "Sharon, how could you not compare me to Jack? Both alcoholics, both trashed our families-I'm still messing up families I didn't even know I had! Sharon, I'm worse than Jack. I can't believe I've done this to you. You trusted me."

Sharon tugged on Andy's hand, "I still trust you, Andy. Andy, it would be so wrong of me to judge you now for something in the past. You told me about your past; I knew what I was getting myself into when we started dating, even before that. I knew about your over 20-year road to sobriety you've been on. I've heard the rumors through the years in the building of your dating ways. Andy, when I said yes to you, it was knowing that you had a past; I had a past. That past now is back, but we will deal with it together. How could I judge you now? You didn't do anything to me; this situation happened six years ago, and it's unfair you didn't' know about it until now. We're forced to deal with it now, so we need to do that."

Their food arrived, so they broke the contact they had with their hands. Both sat there, though, still looking at each other.

"Sharon, I have hurt you so much with this. I can't even begin to apologize. This isn't what you signed up for; I know that. It's so much worse. It just goes to show you that I will always be a screw up."

"I slept with Jack," Sharon said quietly.

Andy's eyes flew through his forehead, "What?" he bellowed, trying not to choke on his food.

Sharon patted his hand, "No, no! That didn't come out right. I mean, we all make mistakes. I kept making them by letting Jack come back home for years. Was I stupid? Yes. Was I naive to think things would change? Yes. Point is, for awhile, I kept doing just that. I kept thinking it was a good idea, no worries. While it didn't create a mess like this one, I made mistakes too then. I should have kicked him out for good. I knew he was cheating, and I allowed it to go on. Finally, I had enough, and that was it. The last few years we were married, he tried, and it never happened. Enough was enough. Andy, I think the same is true with you. At some point, all the women, well, you said enough was enough. I can't fault you for what happened before that point. This is the Andy I fell in love with, the one who has owned up to his mistakes, realized what he's done, and tried to change. Andy, I love you, faults and all. This is something that came because of your actions of long ago."

Andy still had his hand over his heart, recovering from what Sharon had said. Thankfully, her "admission" wasn't what it seemed.

Sharon's admission seemed to break the ice. She noticed he was still pale, "I'm sorry," she tugged on his hand, "perhaps, I should have phrased that better, the Jack comment. Hearing it over in my head now, well," she chuckled, "I'm glad you didn't have a heart attack."

Andy chuckled too, the color returning to his face, "I gotta say, Sharon," he smiled for the first time all evening, "I wouldn't have seen that coming."

"Sharon," Andy said as he finished chewing a bit of his veggie wrap, "Can I tell you something?"

Sharon looked up, sipping her soup. She was surprised, "Of course, always. Andy, you know you can tell me anything."

He nodded, and when she finished her bite, he swapped plates around without asking. Sharon didn't object, and Andy silently thanked himself that she seemed almost normal.

"Sharon, I haven't been with anyone else since Linda, that night, until you. You want to know why, well partly?" he asked.

Sharon glanced up, not saying anything, but allowing Andy to continue, "Sharon," he said again, "remember that winter, December, when I got stabbed? You came to visit me to check on me, and we ended up talking for several hours. That was the first time we were both happy and relaxed around each other. I saw something in you that day, and while I never imagined ending up here, well, something in you and the way you spoke to me, it made me want to be a better person. I think I fell for you a little that day, even if I couldn't put words to it at the time."

Sharon put her spoon down as Andy spoke. When he finished, she sat there, thinking, "Andy, I don't know if I even realized it before now, but Jack came home shortly after that, and well, I pushed him away. That was the first time I did that, and couldn't believe it. When he came back the next time, after I had Rusty, I think he believed I'd cave in, but I didn't. I think maybe that night after you were stabbed, maybe that was a subconscious turning point for both of us."

Andy grasped her hand tighter and gave her a small smile. They both resumed eating, but this time the silence wasn't gnawing at them.

Sharon met Andy's gaze as they continued to eat. Suddenly, she grinned, "Andy, you have another daughter," she said almost happy, something Andy couldn't place at all. Her emotions seemed to be all over the place.

Andy put down his fork, "Sharon, we have a daughter, that is if I haven't messed this up too much, and that's what we decide. You didn't sign up for this, so," he shook his head as he trailed off.

Sharon tugged on his arm this time, "Andy, did Rusty scare you off?"

Andy looked at her, bewildered, "No, but, but I knew about Rusty."

Sharon shrugged, "So, he and I were a package deal, along with Ricky and Emily. Your package just-just changed dimensions," her eyes twinkled.

Andy just shook his head, "Sharon, I've messed up my family so much. You heard Cynthia. Perhaps, we should let her grandparents raise her. She wants to be with them, and well, I'm just another obstacle in a kid's life. Maybe it's time I consider what someone else wants and not what I want. I spent the kids' whole lives wanting them to visit me, to like me. That backfired. Maybe I should consider what she, what Ella, wants."

Sharon pursed her lips, "Andy, she can't want what she doesn't have. She doesn't know you, know us. Of course she wants to go with them. She's scared. She's five. What five-year-old knows what is best for them? What 15-year-old knows that? Remember the issues with Rusty? If I'd let him have what he wanted when he was 15, he wouldn't be ours, he wouldn't have a high school degree, he wouldn't be in college, and he wouldn't be the wonderful young man he is now. Andy, she's yours, more so than Rusty even was when I took him home."

Andy nodded as he thought, "Sharon, I'm 58 this year. I've had health issues, even though now the doctor says I'm in good health. While you're so much younger," he grinned, "ready to turn 50 later this year," as she rolled her eyes, "we've both raised kids. We were both looking forward to retirement, so maybe this would be best for her."

Sharon raised her eyebrows, "Arguing that we are too old, but that her grandparents should raise her?" Sharon let that hang.

Andy raised his hands in defense, "Okay, when I heard it aloud, it does sound stupid," he rolled his eyes, "but Sharon, you can't argue that we've already done this."

"Andy, we are still doing that. Whether they are in their 30's like Nicole and Mark, in their 20's like Emily, Ricky, and even now Rusty, we are still doing this. What do you think we do with Rusty all the time? Parent!" Sharon exclaimed.

"Parenting a 20 something is much different than a five year old," he nodded.

"And?" Sharon asked, "She's your daughter. Have you forgotten how to parent? I might have had my kids when I was 22 and 23, but I still know how to be a parent. You do too," she encouraged him.

Andy nodded as Sharon patted his hand. He looked over at her and gave her a sweet smile, "I love you."

Sharon looked at him bashfully, "and, I love you too. Let's go home where we can discuss this more. I don't think you have to worry about shouting, which is the reason I know you came here instead of going home first."

Andy looked down as he chuckled, "You do know me well."

Sharon rolled her eyes, "I thought you knew me, but thinking I would yell at you?"

The ride home was a lot less tense than the ride to dinner, and when they arrived at home, they were both relieved Rusty wasn't there. It wasn't that they didn't want to see Rusty; they still had a lot to discuss, and they needed to do it on their own. They entered the house, and instead of lingering downstairs doing anything, they both retreated to the seclusion of their bedroom where they could talk more in private.

Sharon retreated to the bathroom for a shower, and Andy sprawled out on the bed, thinking. A text message brought him out of his thoughts, and upon glancing he saw it was from Provenza. As much as the two could irritate each other, they were best of friends. The text was simple.

"?"

That was all; Provenza didn't need to ask more. Andy typed out a quick reply, "We'll be okay. Not sure of plans. Talk more tomorrow."

Sharon walked out of the bathroom shortly after, hopefully refreshed from her shower, and Andy noticed she was dressed in her favorite and most comfortable pajamas. She needed comfort, he could see with the situation. He pulled himself off the bed and went about getting himself ready for bed, not that he thought he'd be able to sleep anytime soon. He returned to the room to find Sharon in her rocking chair looking out the window.

Andy put his hand on her shoulder, "We need to decide on things before Cynthia comes over tomorrow."

Sharon looked up, "Decide? Andy, are you still thinking about allowing her grandparents to raise her?"

Andy shrugged, "Sharon, I can't describe it. I feel like such a failure. She's five, and she's never met me. I just can't mess up another kid. She's known them her whole life. I'm the bad guy for taking her away from that. What if they are good people?"

Sharon pursed her lips, "Andy, ultimately, you have to decide, but do not think that I'm not 100% in. Andy, this is your family, thus, my family. You aren't going to mess up. You didn't know she existed-"

Andy cut her off, "Yeah, which is irresponsible enough," he threw up his hands. "Can't wait for that conversation some day. So, Dad-how did you meet my mom-my mom who is in prison for her second offense? Yeah, that will go over well. She'll be so proud to know her mother was over half my age, and that we barely got inside the house and bingo-she's now here!"

Sharon stood, allowing Andy to vent his frustration. She was starting to understand all the issues he was having, "Andy, she won't think that."

Andy stopped, "Sharon, she will. It's the truth. It's bad enough that we have to tell the other five kids about this. They'll all get it right away, and if anything could ever scar Rusty for life, well, that image of me will. Sharon, is that fair to her?"

Sharon walked over and grabbed Andy's arm, "Andy, is it fair to keep her from her father, sisters, and brothers? Andy, we have a lot to offer her. This isn't some kid we're taking in. Rusty was that, and very quickly, he became much more than that. She's already flesh and blood, YOUR daughter. Your daughter," she said again.

Andy looked down at her, "I wish we had a picture of her," he frowned.

Sharon shook her head, "You heard Cynthia. This isn't about guilt or about staring into a face. Emotions must be put aside, as best as they can. We have to decide. Besides, a picture won't change anything."

Andy nodded again and squeezed her hand. He pulled her into an embrace, "I could lose Nicole and Mark over this," he sighed, "another thing I've screwed up. It will prove their mother was right about me."

Sharon looked up at him, "You won't lose them. Have faith. They will be okay, even if they aren't right away. What you can't do is lose a five-year-old who needs you, needs us more than we can imagine. She's already lost her mom; she won't lose her dad too."

Andy hugged her tighter, kissing her forehead, "She didn't lose her mom. She lost an idiot birth parent who has no idea how to be a parent, who is more interested in illegal activities than raising her daughter. She'd gain the best mother she could ever imagine. I don't want to admit I want her. If something happens then, it will be that much worse. I can't want her and then lose her."

Sharon looked up at him, eyes glistening with tears, "Andy, we both already want her. The worst thing would be to give her up, lose her, and then want her. That can't happen. She's yours; she's ours."

Andy nodded, as he whispered in her hair, "Then, we'll fight for her. Ella belongs with us."


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews! I forgot to mention this, and then I had a comment noting that Sharon and Andy are closer in age on the show. They are; both are much closer to 60. For the purpose of my story, I have Sharon younger. It will come up when dealing with things. Hope you enjoy!**

Andy called Cynthia early the next morning as they were on their way to work. He and Sharon knew what they wanted to do, so there was no reason to delay it. Cynthia explained to them there was still a lot to handle, and they would have to deal with Ella's grandparents. They still wanted custody of her. So, Cynthia had agreed she would still come by, and they would discuss the next steps. They adjusted their timing; Sharon and Andy still had to talk to all five kids, so they wanted to meet with Cynthia during the day, when Rusty was in class, before he found out about things in a different way.

The matter of the team was still at hand. Both knew the team must be wondering what was going on, and they knew Provenza well enough that he wouldn't have discussed something this important with the team. So, they made the decision that Andy would tell them this morning. Ella wasn't something to hide, and he was going to own up for his mistakes, even if it meant going into his past again.

Once the team arrived at work, Sharon submitted some leave paperwork for that afternoon and asked to speak to Chief Howard. She explained they were hopefully going to be taking custody of Andy's daughter and with that, they might need some time for court and everything.

"I didn't know Andy had another daughter," Fritz commented as he and Sharon were sitting and talking. Fritz liked Sharon a lot, and while he was technically her superior, the two spoke on a much easier level. He'd worked with Sharon for years now, knew her work ethic, so he didn't question much of anything she did. If she needed time off, he would give it, whenever. He knew Sharon rarely took time off, and even when she did, it was almost always family related. He didn't even really want the hassle of filling out her vacation or personal day requests; the woman had banked so many, it almost didn't matter.

"Well, Chief, until yesterday, we didn't either," Sharon said letting that sink in. Fritz's eyes grew wide.

"Oh," he gave her a surprised look, and Sharon shrugged.

"Go ahead," Sharon prodded, "I know, I know. Resident playboy, and here we are. Joke's on me, right? I should have known what I was getting into. I did know, but here we are."

Fritz frowned, "Sharon, that wasn't what I was going to say at all. I've known you both a very long time. As surprised as I was a few years ago when you two started spending time together, well, you both have a very trusting and respectful relationship. Anything that happened in the past, well, that's not my business. I don't even want to discuss how much I messed up my past. I'm just glad a strong woman like Brenda wasn't bothered by it. You're the same way. You've embraced everything about Andy, and this now, shows that even more."

Sharon just nodded. She couldn't say much else, "Thank you, Chief," she nodded.

"So, this daughter," Fritz inquired, "what's going on?"

"Chief, remember the flight attendants who were smuggling drugs? The FBI was involved in that," Sharon started.

Fritz closed his eyes and nodded, "Those girls?"

Sharon looked down, "Yes."

Fritz continued to nod and shake his head, "Yes, I remember that case. I'm sorry Sharon. This must be a bit of a shock."

Sharon nodded again, "You could say that, but we will be going to family court for custody. Seems as if Linda is going away for 15-20 for drugs again."

"Ahh," Fritz sighed, "some people never learn."

"Indeed, they don't," Sharon added.

"Well?" Fritz asked.

"Well?" Sharon asked back, wondering what he was asking.

"Aren't you going to tell me all about this kid? Sharon, I know you, and I'm sure you love this kid already even if you haven't met him or her," Fritz said, "Rusty is my case in point."

Sharon just smiled as she looked at her hands folded on her lap, "Ella," she said simply. "Her name is Ella, and she's five and a half."

Fritz got a big grin on his face, "Oh, that should be fun," he chuckled, "Five and a half. She's younger than Andy's grandsons, right?"

Sharon looked up and chuckled too, "Yes, the younger one is seven, so she is definitely younger. We're going to have a rude awakening to her schedule. Nicole's boys wear us out for days when we are with them."

Fritz just nodded, "Go, take care of things. I know you'll leave Provenza in charge when you're gone and will probably check in more than you need to. Just keep me updated on things, both work and this, if you don't mind."

Sharon stood and nodded, "I will. Thank you, Chief. Andy and I will be back at work as much as we can throughout all this," she said as she turned to leave.

"Oh, and Sharon," Fritz said as she almost opened the door, "Congratulations. Ella doesn't know how lucky she is."

Sharon grinned and then walked out. Once she reached the Murder Room, she just gave a quick nod to Andy, signaling that everything was fine with Fritz. Sharon had wanted to speak to him before talking with the team.

As much as the team had wanted to ask, no one had mentioned anything when Sharon and Andy came in. Provenza had warned them of that last night when he rode back up in the elevator after speaking with Andy.

"Guys, they are dealing with something, and I know they will explain it when they can. Give them that time," he pleaded. Nothing else was said. A collection of smiles and nods indicated the team would wait.

Now, Andy stood, with Sharon in front of Wes' desk, "Ahh, guys, Sykes, can we all talk in the conference room?"

With that, everyone stood and filed to the conference room. Andy was about to start reliving his past, and the team was getting the first round.

"So everyone," Andy started, as he was standing at the head of the table, on arm scratching the back of his head, "I need to tell you about something." Sharon stood behind him and off to the side, near the door. She was leaning up against the door, arms casually crossed. This was Andy's story, and it was something he needed to do. "I know you all saw Cynthia come in here yesterday and talk with Sharon and me. Turns out I have a daughter, Ella. I've never met her."

Everyone's wide eye, blank stare confirmed that Provenza hadn't said a word to the team. Tao and Julio caught each other's gazes and shook their head. All eyes turned back to Andy.

"So, to make a long story short, Ella is five and a half. Her mother is going to prison for drugs, and Sharon and I will now be going to family court to hopefully get custody of her," he admitted.

All eyes glanced toward Sharon, where she stood, expressionless. Everyone seemed to conclude Sharon couldn't be that upset if she was here and agreeing to go to court with Andy.

"Sir, who is Ella's mom? I don't remember you dating anyone. For as long as I can remember, you've just been chasing the Captain," Julio grinned.

Sharon tried to keep herself from grinning too and looked down at the floor. Even though they weren't dating at the time, this part stung a little for Sharon. She was going to have to listen to this part of the story more and more.

Andy sighed and shook his head, "I wasn't. It was a stupid decision at the time. I haven't seen her since, and obviously, I didn't know about Ella."

The room nodded, and Buzz looked up, "Captain, are you okay with all of this?"

Sharon looked up. Usually the team didn't ask her things of this nature outright, but this was anything but a typical situation, and the team had grown quite attached and protective of Sharon, "Yes, I'm okay with this," she nodded, as she made eye contact with several. She didn't say anything else, and she resumed her place just standing there.

Nothing more was said about it after that. The room started to stand. Looking at it, Julio took the lead and stood; Andy had said what he needed to say, and that was it. They would talk more later, more one on one, but there was nothing more to say right now. Everyone knew how awkward this was.

"Sir, congratulations," Julio stuck out his hand to shake Andy's. "Ma'am, if you need anything, you let me know."

Both nodded at Julio as he was the first to walk out. The rest of the team filed out offering their support and congratulations too.

The rest of the morning passed by without incident, and at 12:00, Sharon walked out of her office, purse and laptop bag in hand, much how Andy had looked the night prior, "Ready to go?" she asked. Andy nodded. He'd told the team, once back at their desks, that he and Sharon would be in and out for awhile until things were settled. Once again, he knew Provenza would keep everyone informed.

Once Sharon and Andy were downstairs, Sharon looked over at him, "I'll drive," she told him, He raised his eyebrows at her.

"Home? Sharon, I can drive us home," he told her.

Sharon nodded, "I know. A stop first," she nodded, and he just shrugged his shoulders at her and nodded too.

A few minutes later, they arrived at Sharon's destination, "A furniture store?" Andy asked.

Sharon just hummed as they walked toward the entrance, "Well, while we do have that queen mattress frame in the guest room, we haven't had time to really decorate. She's going to need some furniture. The mattress is newer anyway. It was my old one that I'd bought just before we were dating, and you said it was too soft. So, that is perfect, but we should really find something that looks like a little girl."

Andy glanced at her, "You don't think we're rushing things?"

Sharon glanced back at him, "You do? She's five; it's not like we have nine months to get ready. She's already here. Regardless of any outcome, she's going to be in our lives, hopefully living with us all the time. Still, we need to have a room ready for her."

Andy nodded, and as he opened the door to the store, he said, "Lead the way."

An hour later with receipt in hand, they left the furniture store. They had picked out an off-white bedroom set for her, something that would be appropriate for a little girl, but also would grow with her. They would work on decorating the room later, but at least now, she would have a dresser and chest of drawers. Andy went toward the driver's side, "One more stop," Sharon nodded at him.

"Can we get some lunch first?" Andy asked looking at his watch, "My other question is will we have time for your other stop since we have to meet Cynthia?"

"Yes to both questions," Sharon added, "Now, I'm still driving," she grinned.

They grabbed a quick bite to eat at a local deli. They'd never been to it, but they had a nice meal. It was on the corner down from the furniture store, and they made a mental note to eat there again. Once they were back in the car, Sharon drove toward the house. Andy knew not to ask where they were going; she wasn't going to tell him.

"Sharon, the toy store, really?" Andy turned toward her with raised eyebrows. "Sharon, we don't need to stop here now."

Sharon swatted away his hand, "I know! It's not what you think. Come on," she encouraged.

The two entered the store, and Sharon immediately went toward the back.

"Sporting goods?" Andy asked.

Sharon shook her head, "Not quite. A bike. Yes, I agree we can get other things later, but she will need a bike. You've got to have something for her to do. I'm guessing she doesn't have one, not if she's been bounced around so much."

"What made you think of a bike, Sharon? I'm surprised you didn't think of a dollhouse or something. A bike surprise me with you," he asked.

Sharon glared at him, "Are you saying girls don't ride bikes?" she took a stance, arms crossed.

Andy raised his arms in defense, "No! Not at all. I guess when I think little girl, I think dolls and dollhouse first. It just isn't the first thing to cross my mind. Princesses, Barbies, you know. Even art stuff. I'm impressed actually."

Sharon smiled as she patted his chest, "Well, I was thinking of you. You're her dad, and you love to be outside. She'll need her dad to teach her how to ride a bike, so that seems like a good place to start. I was having trouble envisioning you at a tea party."

"I can do a tea party!" Andy complained.

Sharon covered her mouth laughing, "Oh, I know. I can't wait to see that," she grinned, "but first, let's find a bike," she winked.

Andy shook his head, muttering, and they looked around. Sharon spun around, "Besides, Provenza is already getting the dollhouse."

Andy's eyes grew huge, "He's what?"

Sharon shrugged, "Well, Patrice is. She texted me last night when you were in the shower, asking if things were okay. I told her we were going to seek custody of Ella, and she asked what they could do. I told her I'd love some shopping help, and she was delighted with that. Then, she said not to worry about getting her a dollhouse; they wanted to do that."

Andy shook his head, chuckling, "That, I would pay to see-Patrice dragging Provenza down the dollhouse aisle."

Sharon giggled, "I know. I wanted to tell you, but I didn't want to spoil my plans for today. Now, what bike did you find?"

15 minutes later, the two left the store, saddled with a bike, helmet, kids' baseball glove, and bat. Sharon was chuckling at Andy's contained excitement. Now, it was time to meet with Cynthia and figure out how this was all going to go.


	6. Chapter 6

**Here's the next chapter. I feel like I need to address something-To the "guest" commenting-I'm sorry if you don't like the story. It's a story, and I made mention of the characters' age question in the last chapter notes. Yes, I believe they are much older on the show, but for this, I made them younger-a story. The point IS to make Sharon and Andy very, very different from the grandparents. This chapter continues with that. It shows that while vastly different, they can both have good lives and love a child, thinking their situation is best for a child. I read a lot of fanfiction, some I don't really like, but I also don't believe in posting negative comments. Suggestions and such are great, but just to say you disagree, don't like it, and I should reconsider it, I just don't understand that. I had been enjoying writing. To the others, thank you for the encouragement. I do appreciate it.**

"Why is there a kid's bike in the garage?" Rusty asked as he walked into the house, unaware of the afternoon's guest. "Cynthia!" he said surprised, noting now that Sharon and Andy were both home talking to Cynthia. "Guys, what's going on?"

Sharon glanced at Andy, and he shook his head. Their meeting with Cynthia had gone on much longer than they had realized, obviously. Rusty was home and looking for answers.

"I'll just be on my way," Cynthia stood, collecting some of her things. "I'll leave this folder here with you both," she nodded. Sharon and Andy both stood, and Andy walked her to the front door while Sharon turned to face Rusty.

"Rusty, you're home earlier than we thought. We'd like to talk you. Sit down," she motioned, and Andy had returned to join them.

"Yeah, my last class of the day was cancelled. Professor was sick. Why was Cynthia here? Oh great, are you taking in some other kid?" he asked.

Sharon and Andy glanced at each other, and Rusty picked up on that, "You are, aren't you?"

Andy held up his hand, "Rusty, calm down a minute. Hear us out."

Rusty slumped back in his chair, looking between the two of them. He noticed a manila folder on the table. Something was up.

Sharon looked to Andy, and he nodded at her. She cleared her throat, "Rusty, Cynthia was here because we discovered Andy has another daughter."

The room was quiet as they let that sink in. Rusty had a very confused expression on his face, glancing between the two of them, "Wait, what?"

Andy nodded, picking up his cue to continue, "Rusty, I've told you I made a lot of mistakes in my past, and I'm not proud of the man I used to be. Well, part of that, I have a daughter as a result. Cynthia just found out because she's in foster care. Her mother is going to prison for 15-20 years for drugs."

Rusty was speechless, his mouth hanging open, "You're serious?" he asked. He wasn't sure what else to say.

Both nodded, "Very," Sharon said quietly.

"Her name is Ella," Andy continued, but he was cut off.

"How old is she? Like close to my age?" Rusty asked.

The two shook their head, while Sharon pulled the manila file toward her. Andy spoke up, "She's five and a half."

"A little kid!" Rusty almost screamed. "You've been with Sharon like a long time, well, not that long, but still, she's five?"

Both nodded again, and Sharon opened the file. Rusty, Cynthia just brought this to us. Here's a picture of her. It's the first one we've seen.

Sharon handed it to Rusty, and he took it, studying it, "Whoa, she looks a lot like Nicole," he added, putting the picture down and looking at the two of them. They both gave a small smile at the mention of Nicole.

"Yes, we said the exact same thing," Sharon added.

"Dead ringer," Andy shook his head, "I need to find some pictures of her when she was younger, but the resemblance is there. People would probably think she's Nicole's daughter with that dark hair," he nodded.

"And the Flynn grin," Sharon smiled.

"So, she's your kid?" Rusty asked looking at Andy.

Andy looked at him, "She is. Rusty, we are going to petition family court to get custody of her. That means she would come to live with us, all of us, permanently."

Rusty sat back and sighed. He didn't say anything for a couple of minutes. Sharon and Andy sat there together, both looking at Rusty and down at the picture. Sharon kept absentmindedly tracing over the picture with her finger.

"So, while I like have a million questions," Rusty finally broke the silence, "I'm not going to ask anything about all of this, well, about the backstory to all of this, right now. Andy, you were so good to me when I first came into your lives. I was a jerk; I know that. I tried everything I could to make your lives miserable. Sharon, we've talked about that, but you didn't judge me. When I've had everything about my past come out in the open, neither of you judged me, so I'm not going to ask."

Sharon and Andy turned to look at each other, eyes wide open, stunned. This wasn't at all the reaction they expected from Rusty. As they were sitting there, still stunned, Rusty continued, "Besides," he shrugged, "she's your family, Andy, and Sharon, you're always telling me we have to be there for family, right?"

Sharon broke the silence, eyes brimming with tears, "Rusty, that's very grown up of you. I think we are both very touched. Thank you."

Rusty shrugged, "Well, it's not like I can change anything. Sharon, knowing you, at the mention of a kid in need, well, you probably already have her room decorated in your head."

Andy burst out laughing, and Sharon turned and smacked at him, "That's not funny."

Andy continued to laugh, "Oh, but it is! Rusty, she's doing exactly that."

The three chuckled for a moment, which was a welcome relief to the awkward tension, "So, when does Ella come live with us?"

Sharon and Andy glanced at each other again, and Andy sighed, "Well, that remains to be seen. Her grandparents want custody of her. Cynthia was here for a couple of hours, and it's going to be a bit of a struggle."

"But, you're like her dad, right?" Rusty asked.

Andy nodded, "I am, but there's other factors."

Rusty looked puzzled, "Like what?"

"Rusty, remember when Daniel wanted custody of you, and there was a lot to consider?" Sharon asked.

Rusty nodded, "Yeah, but it's you guys. Cynthia knows that."

Andy nodded, "Well, you want to be a lawyer, so here's your first lesson. Cynthia said her grandparents want her. They've had her in their care before. She wants to go with them, but because she's five, her wishes won't really be considered, at least by a judge. The judge has to look at other things. Cynthia said there are a few red flags, one being our jobs and hours."

Sharon jumped in, "It's a concern that Andy works long hours, as do I, with Major Crimes. Plus, the fact that he's been injured on the job recently and could be at any point. It's not a safe job. As you know, the hours aren't good; they don't go in our favor."

"As you know, we're not spring chickens," Andy added. "My health issues will be brought up."

"Yeah, but you said her grandparents," Rusty interjected.

Andy sighed, "Her grandparents are 47."

"47!" Rusty exclaimed, "That's younger than both of you."

Sharon and Andy grimaced, "We know," Andy glared at him. "Thanks for the reminder. Apparently, the grandmother was 17 when she had the daughter, and then Linda, Ella's mom, was 25."

Rusty rose his eyebrows at the first mention of Ella's mom. Rusty was getting an idea about that story, so he just nodded.

"So," Sharon continued, "obviously, her grandparents are younger than her father, so that's a concern for us."

"Well, you're like close in age to them, Sharon," Rusty added.

Sharon and Andy glanced at each other again, "Yes, but there's a problem with that too," Sharon commented as Rusty raised his eyebrows, "It actually doesn't look good for us that you and I, Rusty, are in the picture. While we know we have a loving family here," Sharon trailed off.

"It looks like I'm just a guy living with some lady and her grown son. Ella's grandparents are married; we aren't, even though we love each other and own this house together."

Rusty frowned, "That's messed up. Well, the house has to help, right?"

Andy nodded, "That's actually one thing we have going for us. We have a big enough house, room for Ella."

"The other thing is location," Sharon added, speaking quietly. Rusty looked to her. "Ella's grandparents live in Kentucky, so this won't be an easy decision."

"Whoa," Rusty said rubbing his face, "So, they want to take her to Kentucky?"

Andy nodded, "Yes, they are apparently staying in Linda's place right now until the end of the month when her lease is up. They want to wrap this up by then."

"So, if they get her?" Rusty asked.

"Cynthia said worst case for us would be visitation, like Christmas break and the summer," Sharon added.

"-but, we want her all the time," Andy stated, making it clear.

Rusty just nodded, taking it all in, "What do you know about her grandparents?"

Andy shrugged, "Not much. Cynthia said they didn't have a lot. Grandmother works at Dairy Queen."

"Well, that's why Ella would want to live there!" Rusty yelled, "Free ice cream!"

That broke the tension, and all were quiet until Rusty spoke again, "So, Sharon and I are actually a problem?"

Andy shook his head, "Not to me. We'll get the judge to see that. You're my family, no matter what a judge wants to say."

Sharon and Andy's conversation had gone better than they had anticipated, and that left the other four to speak with about Ella. Both were dreading those conversations, but they had to happen.

Sharon and Andy first called Sharon's kids. While difficult, they knew their conversations would be easier. They were able to snag both of them on a group chat. After a 15-minute discussion, where Sharon assured them this is what she wanted, they finished. It hadn't gone well, but it hadn't gone poorly. The kids were processing, and ultimately, they said it wasn't their decision to be made. Sharon could tell both were disappointed in Andy, but she hoped that they would, in time, realize he was the man he was today because he'd learned from his mistakes in the past.

They were able to get Mark, Andy's son on Facetime, and he had the worst reaction, "Dad, I thought I could start trusting in you again, and you do this," he shook his head. "I'll be in touch," he'd said before he abruptly ended the group chat. This is what Andy had feared, but he couldn't fix it right now. He wanted to, but it would take time, just like the years he'd already put in getting Mark's trust. Andy knew he'd call Mark again later, but he'd let him think for now.

Both had asked Nicole and Dean to come over, and Rusty had volunteered to watch the boys in the pool while the talked. Nicole broke down crying, "Dad, of all the irresponsible things to do," she had started, but Dean had patted her hand to quiet her. Dean was the one who surprised them the most.

"Andy, I've heard story after story of your mess ups. It takes a big man to own up to them and face them. You're doing that yet again, even when you thought you'd already done that. Sharon," he turned to her, "I know it takes an amazing woman to raise another man's child," he smiled at Nicole, "and you have my respect. I can't speak for Nicole, but you have my support."

Nicole looked at everyone now, almost ashamed of her outburst. Sharon and Dean excused themselves to give Andy and Nicole some time.

"Dad, I'm so disappointed in you," Nicole nodded.

Andy nodded too, "I know, but I would be even more disappointed in myself if I didn't step up for my daughter, for both of my daughters. Nicole, I'd do anything for you. You are my world. I feel the same way about Ella, and I haven't even met her. Nicole, she's mine; she's your half-sister. She even looks just like you. I have to do this. I'm sorry I disappointed you, but sometimes mistakes have lifelong consequences. Sadly, I didn't think of that years ago."

Nicole just nodded, remaining quiet, "Dad, I can't say this makes things okay with us. It's done some damage."

Andy nodded as he patted her arm, "Damage can be fixed; it can heal. I'll work on the repairs," and he stood to find Sharon.

After their exhausting evening, Sharon and Andy both fell into bed. Sharon had been smart to request off the next day for both of them. They had a lot to do, and the mental stress was wearing on them.

"Does it bother you Rusty and I are an issue and not a help with this," Sharon propped up her arm, noting that Andy was lying on his back with his eyes closed.

Andy's eyes flew open in panic, "No!" he almost shouted, "Of course not. Sharon, without you, I would have been the idiot who would have said she's better with her grandparents. You helped me see that there's no one better to raise her than her parents, us. Not for one second am I worried about you and Rusty. The judge will see that," he added.

Sharon bit her lip as she leaned back, "Okay. You're sure, because I know we talked about getting married long before this ever fell in our laps."

Andy nodded, "We did, and I'm fine with our decision. You can't be married in the Catholic Church, so I'm okay with that. I know what we have. A piece of paper won't change that."

Sharon nodded, and the two were quiet as they both drifted off to sleep.

Two days later, Sharon and Andy found themselves sitting down in a mediation room awaiting Ella's grandparents. Cynthia had suggested it, and the lawyer they had hired had too. Sharon had immediately called Gavin, who referred her to his good friend and colleague, Chuck, a specialist in family cases. Chuck was very blunt and to the point, and he suggested it would be in everyone's best interest if they could work things out instead of a judge.

The door opening had Sharon and Andy looking up to come face to face with Ella's grandparents. Both stood to shake their hands.

"This is the guy," the grandfather huffed at the mediator, "You're the guy?"

Andy nodded, "Andy Flynn," he stuck out his hand, and this is my girlfriend, Sharon Raydor."

"Ahh, girlfriend, so you're some playboy who can't settle down, getting girls, just like our Linda," he waved Andy's hand away and sat down. Sharon and Andy were quite surprised by the abrupt greeting.

"You're old," the grandmother said, sizing up both Andy and Sharon. "How old are you?" she asked, joining her husband. Andy and Sharon followed suit and sat down.

"It's Wendy and Jack, right?" Andy noted, as he and Sharon had discussed they now totally hated the name Jack.

"Yeah, that's us. So, how old are you?"

Andy sighed and glanced toward Sharon, "58. Sharon's 49."

"Older than us. You got our young daughter pregnant? Some old guy," Jack shook his head, "California."

The mediator jumped in, "Okay, let's see what we can do to keep things civil here. We've all met. Captain Raydor, Lieutenant Flynn-" he started.

"Captain! Lieutenant! Who are you people? Wendy asked, not being told anything prior.

The mediator nodded. The lawyer had agreed not to come, as to not wanting to stir things up if his presence made things worse. Sharon saw the nod and continued, "I am Captain Sharon Raydor, head of the Major Crimes Division of the LAPD, the most elite group of detectives in Los Angeles. Andy here," she nodded to him, "is my third in command, a lieutenant, a rank he's held for over a decade. We investigate and solve high profile murders and cases of that nature."

"Cops," Jack muttered, "just cops. Hate cops. Busting the wrong people all the time."

Sharon's glance at Andy had both raising their eyebrows, and the mediator continued before they could say anything.

"As I had started to say, Lieutenant Flynn here was only recently notified about Ella. He had no knowledge of her before now. Due to that, he would like full custody of her."

"I'm willing to allow you to see her, but she's my daughter, and I want to raise her," Andy added.

The two waved him off, "We want her in Kentucky with us. She'll have a good life there. We did just fine. Met when we were 15, had Linda when we were 17. Worked at Dairy Queen all my life, and Jack here, he's been a fix-it guy all his life."

Sharon cringed at the idea of Ella living so far away, and before she could react, they continued, "Our Linda, she made it big. She always wanted to be an LA girl. Made it out here, till the drugs corrupted her. She was a good girl. Big job as a flight attendant. Those people, they corrupted her. Then, the likes of you, you got her pregnant."

Andy didn't even want to reply. They had painted a picture of a perfect daughter, and he couldn't argue that he had gotten her pregnant. So, he remained quiet.

The mediator spoke, "Perhaps, Lieutenant, Captain, you might explain how you plan to provide for Ella, what her life would be like with you."

Andy nodded, "She'd live with us in our home. We have a four-bedroom home with a pool. She has three brothers and two sisters, all of whom are grown. The youngest, Rusty, still lives at home with us. He's in college at UCLA."

"College," Jack barked, "don't care about that."

"We do," Andy said sternly and let that sit for a few moments before continuing, "We've spoken to the private Catholic school where three of our kids attended, and she would go there. We'll make sure she could go to college, something we feel strongly about."

"You didn't go to college, being a cop!" Wendy exclaimed.

Both Andy and Sharon jumped, and Sharon corrected her, "We both did. For many parts of law enforcement, college is needed. We both have four-year degrees. All five of our kids went to college, and Ella would be no exception. We'd provide her the opportunity to go to college if she wants. Most of all, we'll love her. We have so much love to give. We love her, and we haven't even met her," he nodded.

"What would life be like in Kentucky?" the mediator asked, getting things on track.

Jack waved, "You know, school, going to work with us. Linda was our wild one, wanting to see the world. Our other two kids live in the same town as us. They are grown too. One has four kids, and the other has one. Lived there all their lives. Met their spouses in high school. Both married by 19."

Sharon grabbed Andy's hand, and he returned her squeeze. This wasn't the life they wanted for Ella. They wanted to give her the world, endless possibilities, whatever she desired.

"Tell you one thing," Jack jumped in, "If we take Ella with us, we aren't bringing her back here. We hate LA. No place for her here. We'd just assume her not ever see you again."

Andy clutched Sharon's hand tighter under the table. Mediation wasn't going well. By the end of the meeting, they had a court date set. Ella's future would be decided in two weeks.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks for the reviews! One reviewer comment follows exactly what I thought (so yes, I agree with you!). I don't want to give it away, but you'll see...**

The next two weeks were a blur for Andy and Sharon. They were in and out of work, both grateful they had an understanding boss in Fritz and an amazing team to hold things together at work. The team noticed this was wearing on both; they were quiet at work, and they remained very tight-lipped about everything. They were nervous, and neither one wanted to think of the possibility that Ella would be dropped in their lives, only to be taken out again.

"Andy, I get they love her too, but she's your daughter," Sharon said one evening. "Ella has only lived with them when she was a tiny baby. Anything else, she just knows them from visits. Of course, that's what she would want," Sharon shook her head, "She hasn't been allowed to meet you yet, so why would she know anything different."

Andy watched Sharon pacing, and he finally got up and pulled her into an embrace. They'd had a lot of nights like this, "Trust the system," he said, "That's what Chuck keeps saying, and we say the same thing at work. We've done everything we can."

And here it was, family court day, and Sharon and Andy were visibly nervous. Rusty was coming; Nicole was coming. It was a big deal. As upset as Nicole was, she was trying to move past it, trying to see that her dad was doing the right thing. Dean was helping her with that. The other kids were still working through emotions, all at different phases, but the fact that Nicole and Rusty were coming meant the world to both.

Ella's grandparents were already in the hallway when Sharon and Andy arrived with their lawyer, Chuck. They, too, had found a lawyer, but not a great one. Chuck said the guy they'd hired was one whose picture was on a park bench, one looking for cases anywhere he could. Andy and Sharon just hoped Chuck could work wonders.

When their case was called, they all walked in and sat at the two tables at the front. Andy and Sharon sat with Chuck, and Ella's grandparents sat with their lawyer. Sharon sat with her hand, firmly gripped in Andy's, nervous.

Rusty tapped Sharon when he arrived, and she turned to find him, along with Nicole, smiling back at her. She nudged Andy, who turned and smiled at the two as well. They sat down, just behind their parents. A few minutes later, Rusty nudged Sharon, and when she turned, she saw the whole team filing in behind Rusty. Their team; their family. The team nodded and gave them small smiles. Ella's grandparents didn't have anyone; they sat alone, almost looking bitter. Sharon glanced at them a few times, feeling badly for them, but at the same time, irritated. She and Andy had wanted to work out something, but they certainly didn't. The words still stung that they had said, "If we take Ella with us, we aren't bringing her back here. We hate LA. No place for her here. We'd just assume her not ever see you again." Sharon shook her head, as she silently replayed those words in her head. She hoped that was not the outcome.

Once the judge entered and was seated, he looked around the room and pursed his lips, "Well," he said trying to break the ice a little, "it isn't often I have an entire police division in my courtroom. Major Crimes, welcome," he nodded to everyone, earning a chuckle from most of the people in the room. While they didn't have a lot of cases that wound up in this part of the courthouse, they certainly had some. Plus, the division was well known in the legal world; they were good detectives, taking on many high-profile cases, and sometimes, that involved the placement of children, thus an appearance in family court.

The judge turned and looked at Chuck, "Mr. Meade, I have your request here."

"Along with the updated paperwork, I presume, Your Honor?" Chuck asked speaking to the judge.

The judge nodded, "Yes, it's been added here on top," and he turned to Andy and Sharon. "Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, I see your joint petition here."

With that, a gasp was heard from several, mostly the team, at the new information. All eyes turned to Sharon and Andy, who both sat, stone-faced, facing the judge. Neither flinched, although they could feel the eyes behind them burning a hole in them when the judge spoke to them or broadcast their news.

Rusty turned around to Provenza grinning. Provenza looked back at him, shaking his head, shocked. Rusty had known, and by looking at her, Nicole had too, "Lucky idiots," Provenza muttered to himself and then tried to pay attention. He was having trouble, as the rest of the team was still trying to figure out how Sharon and Andy had kept this a secret. Provenza glanced toward the table; he'd deal with Flynn's secret later, not that he minded they had gotten married. He was just irritated he hadn't been told. If he, along with the rest of the team, had to watch the office romance unfold, they should have been allowed to see the wedding, not that he'd argue that. No, that sounded soft, and he'd have to come up with another reason to argue this with Andy later. He watched Andy use his free hand, the one that wasn't clutched in Sharon's lean over and put something in Sharon's free hand. Their joined hands broke for a second, but only to slip on their rings. Apparently, Andy had them in his pocket. The move was quick, unnoticeable unless you were watching them specifically, but powerful.

"Your Honor," the other lawyer interjected, "we were not informed of any updated paperwork eluding to marriage."

The judge looked to Chuck, "You Honor, the paperwork was messengered over to them last week, eight days ago, to be exact, right after Mr. and Mrs. Flynn here got married. Here's a copy of where the office secretary signed for it from the messenger along with an affidavit signed showing what was in the report."

"Mr. Long, it looks like everything is in order. I'm sorry if your office mishandled it and this is the first you are seeing it, but it's here," he motioned for their lawyer to come and see the paperwork. Andy titled his head slightly and saw Ella's grandparents scowling and whispering to themselves. Sharon and Andy had briefly wondered why Ella's grandparents hadn't tried to reach an agreement after getting that information; apparently, they hadn't seen it.

"Your Honor, it would seem this is a ploy. The biological father just happens to get married to make a stronger case?" the other lawyer asked. He was making the stronger case right now by pointing it out to the court.

The judge looked to Chuck, Andy, and Sharon, "Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, you realize you have a legally binding marriage. AS officers of the law, we expect you are upholding the law and not twisting it, I presume?"

Chuck spoke again; he'd told Andy and Sharon to not say anything unless specifically asked, "Yes, Your Honor. My clients are aware. This proceeding only shifted their timeline. As you can see from other court documents, they purchased a home together months ago, well before any of this came to light. Their boss, Chief Howard, has had paperwork disclosing of their personal relationship for almost two years now. So, your Honor, this is certainly a legally binding marriage they entered into willingly and for each other."

Sharon listened to the words, thinking back to the conversation that tipped the scales for her, for them, that had turned her thoughts of a "simple piece of paper" into much more than that. It had been that night after they'd tried mediation. She couldn't get the conversation where she'd asked Andy about their not being married being an issue, out of her head. She couldn't sleep after that conversation, not that Andy's response was the reason. No, she couldn't sleep because she realized she couldn't let their future be dictated by what she'd said was "just a piece of paper." It was, but it wasn't. It was much more than that, and it definitely could mean the difference between Ella living with them and not. Sharon realized she wasn't doing the right thing for their family. She would deal with her issues with the church later; she would come to terms with the church not accepting her marriage, but she knew she would never be able to come to terms if she stood in the way of one of their children. Sharon decided marrying Andy was not going to be the reason to lose Ella. Yes, the courts still had to decide, but she had decided that she was going to take charge of her life, even if that meant she didn't have the blessing of her church. Sharon knew she'd spent years not taking charge of her life, and that had only made her miserable. She was happy when she finally started putting what she wanted ahead of what she thought everyone else wanted for her. She still had her faith; no one could take that away from her, and she wanted to kick herself for putting Andy off for so long. He would have married her long ago, but she'd put him off, only now realizing that her faith was hers, and the church couldn't take that away. She wasn't going to keep her from getting married when she was legally, in the eyes of the law, able to do so.

She'd wrestled with it for hours, not sleeping all night, finally moving to the couch downstairs to think. When Andy finally woke and found her, she had to chuckle, thinking about that conversation.

"I'm ready," she smiled up brightly at him as he had walked over and put his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it in greeting.

Andy gave her an odd look, "What? For breakfast? Work? Sharon, you haven't showered and changed. If it's breakfast, what are we having? Wait, did you sleep at all? You look tired."

"Andy," she said softly, yet trying to stop him from ranting, "I'm ready to marry you. Andy, I stayed up all night working through things in my head. I can have my faith and still marry you. Other denominations allow divorced couples to remarry; the Catholics don't, but others do. Andy, I may not have the blessing of the church, but I have my faith, and I want to marry you."

Andy glanced down at her, rubbing his face, "Sharon, if this is a dream, it's the best dream I've had in awhile."

Sharon chuckled, as she stood up, "No dream. I want to marry you," she said sweetly. "Please."

Andy's eyes opened widely; he was definitely awake now, "So," he said playfully, "is this something we can discuss after breakfast because I'm starving."

Sharon grinned at him as she went to embrace him, "Oh, I think before," she said as she leaned up and kissed him. Andy broke the kiss and spun around, taking off, "I'll be right back," he said.

"Andy!" Sharon scolded him, "What are you doing? Stop running. You're an old man, as we keep being told. Your health issues, Andy," she shook her head as she heard him thudding down the stairs.

Andy returned breathless, smiling. He proudly held out an engagement ring, as he stood there grinning like he was a kid who had just pulled out a loose tooth. Sharon covered her mouth, chuckling.

"Andy, where did you get this?" she said, her mouth still covered and totally shocked he already had one.

He was grinning, "My gun lock box," he said matter of fact.

Sharon raised her eyebrows, "Your gun lock box? How did I not see it? We both get in that box."

Andy shrugged, "I don't know. It's been there. You can't miss it, and I wasn't opposed to you seeing it; did you see the diamond on this thing? It's huge!" he exclaimed, a twinkle in his eye.

Sharon chuckled and nodded, "I did notice it was a nice-looking ring."

Andy looked hurt, "Nice looking ring? Got any better offers this morning?"

Sharon started laughing harder, turning it into a snort laugh. Andy just stood there, still holding the ring. Sharon was laughing so hard, she'd doubled over. He was surprised when in one quick swoop, Sharon stood, grabbed the ring, put it on, turned, and walked to the kitchen. Andy still stood there, speechless.

"That's it?" he asked, looking surprised.

From the kitchen, Sharon called out, "Well, you said you were hungry. I guess I had better figure out how to be a better cook if I'm going to get married. Something about wives are supposed to be able to cook," she grinned at him, as she caught his eye.

Andy's eyes narrowed, "Well, yeah, why do you think I've been waiting? You cooking skills aren't up to par, yet," he commented, baiting her. If she wanted to tease him and just get herself engaged, because to him, that's what it looked like she'd just done, he was going to mess with her some.

He heard Sharon quietly chuckling as she moved about in the kitchen, and he just stood there, rooted in the living room, shocked at the last 15 minutes. Sharon's voice drew him out of his trance.

"Andy, breakfast is ready," she grinned, a little too mischievously at him. He snapped out of his state and walked to the kitchen, eyeing her, knowing that look of hers.

On the table, breakfast was ready. She had put out a bowl-empty, a box of cereal, a carton of milk, and a bottle of orange juice.

"Gee, thanks," he turned to her, rolling his eyes, "your culinary skills have improved so."

She just shrugged her shoulders, "Well, I have been practicing in the kitchen," she said looking at and toying with her ring, which fit perfectly by the way. She'd have to ask him about that later, "but, I'm just wondering how I never saw this ring?"

Andy shrugged, refusing to give any details, as he sat and poured his cereal, "Well, sometimes the best things are right in front of you."

Bringing herself back to the courtroom, Sharon grinned, thinking of what Andy had said. Yes, sometimes the best things were right in front of you, and her family, her growing family was proof of that. She and Andy had gotten married three days later, when they finally had finished with their teasing phase, and Sharon hadn't been happier since. They'd told all the kids, none of whom were surprised. They'd all expected that, well before news of Ella. None of them knew about Sharon wrestling so much with her thoughts on marriage and the church. Andy and Sharon had decided to have just Rusty along with Nicole and Dean to witness their wedding. Any celebrations could come after they hopefully brought Ella home. Sharon toyed with her ring, something she hadn't worn since they had gotten married, as she put her attention back on the proceedings.

"Mr. Long, I see no problem with Mr. and Mrs. Flynn's marriage. Looking over things here, they are married, own a home-one large enough for children, they have a total of six children-the one in question included, they have no outstanding debts, they have no criminal records, they are employed as officers of the law, and they have a report recommending them from DCFS. Now, I see here that you want to contest a few things. Age, well, Mr. Flynn is not that much older than your clients, and Mrs. Flynn is almost the same age. Health, Mrs. Flynn has not had any health issues, and while Mr. Flynn has in the past, he has a clean bill of health, and one of those instances came as a result of a work-related injury. Your clients have both had their fair share of health issues."

Sharon caught Andy's attention, and she raised her eyebrows. They didn't know that. They did know Chuck had done his research, and apparently, he'd found that.

"Now, another thing-you are asking that a child, born in California, whose mother is incarcerated in California, be sent to a different state, when a proper custodial parent still remains in California? I don't like that, and I don't like to do that to families unless I have a good reason. Your petition states the child is used to living with her grandparents. Per the records that were submitted by the Flynns' attorney, the child lived with them for two months when she was less than a year old, and she only saw them one other time when she was four? Is that correct?"

Sharon's eyes bugged out, as she turned to look at Andy. They didn't know any of that; everything they had been told made it sound like Ella knew her grandparents well and had lived with them most of her life.

"Technically, yes, Your Honor," Mr. Long stated, "but, that was only because my clients couldn't afford to get out here to California to see her, and the child's mother only brought her to Kentucky that one time when she was four."

Andy squeezed Sharon's hand; they both knew things were looking up for them. They were going to continue to follow Chuck's advice and not say anything.

"Furthermore," the judge continued, "I see that a court mediation was attempted, initiated by Mr. and Mrs. Flynn to work out a solution. Is that correct?"

Both Chuck and Mr. Long nodded and said, "Yes, Your Honor."

"The court mediator noted that no agreement could be reached and commented that your clients, Mr. Long, made a comment, and I quote, 'If we take Ella with us, we aren't bringing her back here. We hate LA. No place for her here. We'd just assume her not ever see you again,' as the judge looked up. "Mr. Long, would that be a correct statement?"

He nodded, "Yes, Your Honor. They admit to saying that."

The judge frowned and looked at them, and then he turned to look at Andy and Sharon, "Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, I have had a couple days now to look over this case. Mr. Flynn, I feel it is a tragedy you weren't told about your daughter before now, but I do applaud you for wanting to take responsibility of her now. Is that still your wish?"

Chuck looked at Andy and nodded, "Yes, Your Honor, I want nothing more right now than to meet and raise my daughter. My wife and I, along with our other five children, have a very loving home to offer her."

The judge nodded, "Now, I have a couple of questions for you. I want to make sure you have thought this through. I know your jobs, so, what will Ella's normal day look like? Where will she go to school? What will she do after school, as in who will take care of her? Your jobs won't allow that all the time. Before I make my ruling, what have you done about that?"

Once again, Chuck nodded to Andy and Sharon. Andy looked at Sharon, and he turned and spoke, "Your Honor, we have already spoken to the Catholic school where three of our other five children attended. She would go to school there, where she could also participate in their after-school program. It has sports and the arts built into it. For times when she is home and that isn't available, a family friend, Patrice Provenza, who is retired, is willing to look after her."

Provenza smiled at the mention of Patrice's name. The two of them had discussed it even before Patrice offered it to Andy and Sharon. Provenza took a quick glance around and noted that at some point, Patrice had snuck into court; she was at the back of the room, and he smiled at her when their eyes made contact. This was an easy thing he could do to help his best friend. Andy had helped him over the years, not that he'd admit to it, but Patrice wanting to help Andy, well, that was just Patrice's style.

The judge looked up nodding, and then he caught Provenza's eye, "Lieutenant Provenza, Patrice Provenza, did you get remarried?"

Provenza chuckled as he just nodded to the judge, and the judge smiled back at him, "Ahh," the judge said, "I hadn't heard. Your wife wouldn't happen to be here?"

Provenza turned to see Patrice raising her hand, "Mrs. Provenza, are you then willing to watch over the child when needed?"

Patrice spoke up, "Yes, Your Honor. It was my idea. Seeing as my husband works the same hours they both do," she said nodding to Sharon and Andy, "I'm home alone a lot, and I'd be more than happy to help with Ella."

"Very good," the judge nodded, noting something, "That makes this decision even easier, seeing as a school and care plan has already been discussed. Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, I am granting you sole physical and legal custody of the minor child. I appreciate your willingness to take on your responsibility and provide for a safe, loving home. I also appreciate your attempt at mediation; that could have saved a lot of heartache, which I am sure is the case now. As for your clients, Mr. Long, they still are her grandparents, and I would suggest they put their thoughts aside and try to work out a way to keep in touch with their granddaughter. I am not opposed to grandparents being involved, but in a case like this where the biological parent is fit and willing, I won't take the child away. Case closed," he said as he snapped his gavel and stood.

Sharon grabbed Andy's arm, and he grabbed hers back. They sat there, dazed. They had their daughter, but ironically, they hadn't even met her yet.


	8. Chapter 8

**Short, but sweet. More to come. Thanks for the reviews!**

Cynthia was on the phone for awhile, allowing Sharon and Andy to talk to the team for a few minutes while they waited. The team gathered around them right away after they were told Ella was theirs.

"Congratulations, Captain, Lieutenant," Amy said, overly happy, as she hugged Sharon. Buzz shook Andy's hand. Julio hugged Sharon. Mike patted both Sharon and Andy on the back. Wes shook Andy's hand, as well as Sharon's. He was still getting used to being comfortable in the group. Provenza hung back.

"Well, the first thing I want to say is why didn't we hear about this supposed marriage?" he grumbled.

Everyone parted so that they were standing on both sides of Sharon and Andy, but Provenza was in the middle facing everyone.

"Supposed?" Andy said, taking the bait. "It's real. We are married!"

Everyone smiled at the men; it was clear Provenza was just trying to get to Andy, and Andy was so distracted with everything that he was allowing Provenza to get to him.

"Hmm," he waved, "and, you couldn't even tell us."

Andy sighed, and Sharon patted his arm, "We've been a little busy, and besides, we wanted to stay focused on this right now. We're so excited we got married, but we wanted that to be something separate from Ella at the moment. If you are wanting to know all about it, well as my BFF, we can go sit over there and gossip through all the details," Andy said sarcastically.

Provenza, nor really anyone, was expecting this reaction, and the entire team burst out laughing.

"Lieutenant, Captain," Cynthia cut in on the group. All eyes went to her, "can I speak to you?"

Sharon and Andy excused themselves from the group to talk to Cynthia.

"I just got off the phone with Ella's foster mom," Cynthia smiled as she turned to the two. "I can tell you all this now since the judge has granted you custody. Normally, I would bring her over to you tonight, but Ella's foster parents are both public school teachers. They love being foster parents and currently have three kids with them, Ella included. Now, they knew Ella was very short-term care, and her foster mom said they have been telling her that she would be leaving them soon. The glitch for tonight is that Ella is playing t-ball, and she has a game tonight. Her foster dad has been a high school baseball coach in the past; he's not right now, but apparently he's gotten Ella excited about t-ball. When she was placed with them a month or so ago, she was unhappy, but she's enjoying this. So, her foster mom was wondering if there was anyway you could allow Ella to play her game? It will give her time to say good-bye to her team, and then, I can bring her over to you after school tomorrow.:

Andy got a huge grin at the mention of t-ball. Sharon patted his arm, and he turned to her, "Andy, she should be able to play."

Andy nodded, agreeing, "Yeah, this has been hard enough on her, I'm sure. Can we go watch?"

Cynthia looked at him, a bit surprised, "Well, I don't know if that's a good place for you to get her tonight."

Andy held up his hand, "No, you bringing her to us permanently tomorrow is fine. I wanted to know if we could just go watch her tonight? We don't even have to talk to her if you think that's a problem, but I really want to see her." Sharon squeezed his hand, smiling at him.

"I don't see why that would be a problem. Legally, she is yours, and you are the one allowing her to stay there an extra night. Let me call her foster mom back and ask," Cynthia said and excused herself. Andy grinned at Sharon; Sharon was giddy. She nudged Andy's arm, and they both looked over to Ella's grandparents.

"Come on," Andy said pulling her, as the two walked over to the table. "Wendy, Jack," Andy nodded, "look, this has never been about us tearing Ella away. I'm her father, and we intend to provide her a good home here. I know you don't like me, like us," he indicated, "but, I know you love Ella. If you want to contact her, talk to her over the computer, we'll be okay with that," he looked at Sharon, and she nodded.

Wendy rolled her eyes, "Once we leave LA, we have no plans to come back here. Linda can sit in prison; she made that choice. Ella, well, now she's with you, and we hate coming here."

Andy nodded, "Okay, but you can use Skype or Facetime, right? If you want to speak to her, we can setup a time to call. I'll give you our information, and if you want, call us. It's your choice. I promise I'll take good care of her."

"You'll just get her some fancy education, fancy house, all that," Jack waved.

Andy nodded, "In a way, you are right. We want the best for her, and that will be a good education. That's what being a good parents is-loving your kids so much you want the world for them. It doesn't always have to be a fancy education, but we're going to give her every opportunity she wants."

"I know this is hard," Sharon added, "we get that. For Ella's sake, think about contacting us," she said, sliding her business card to them.

"Captain, Lieutenant," Cynthia broke in again. Sharon and Andy waved at Ella's grandparents and followed Cynthia, "Her foster mom said that was fine. She even said she would like to talk to you tonight and thought Ella would do okay meeting you. Now, she said she'd like to be able to take Ella back to their house tonight so she can sleep and finish school tomorrow, but it is more than fine if you want to go to her game, talk to her foster parents, and meet your little girl."

Sharon cupped her hand over her mouth, a sort of squeal coming out. She smiled up at Andy.

"I know it's not the Dodgers, but care to accompany me to another ballgame tonight?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.

"Oh, I think this will be the best game we've ever seen," Sharon said, "and for once, a crime scene isn't going to ruin our game."


	9. Chapter 9

**Here she is! Meet Ella...**

Sharon and Andy were rushing. The drive to the baseball field had taken longer than it should. LA traffic and a field about as far away as San Diego, as Andy had complained, had them rushing. They weren't late, but they wanted to see Ella as soon as possible. Sharon slowed Andy when they arrived; he was ready to run across the field, looking for her, but she reminded him he didn't want to collapse before they met their daughter. Their daughter-it was really starting to sink in. Ella was theirs, legally, and tomorrow, their lives would forever be changed when she would come to live with them.

As the two started to walk across the baseball fields, they began searching for the right group. Lisa, Ella's foster mom, had said there would be a lot of games going on, but Ella's team name was the Unicorns. Andy had rolled his eyes at that.

"The Unicorns, really?" he'd told Sharon when they had gotten in the car at the courthouse. Sharon looked over at him, giddy and smiling, "Andy, she is five. That sounds like a perfectly normal name for a baseball team," as she chuckled.

Andy gave her a glare, "Yeah, that sounds ferocious. Great name," he rolled his eyes. "The Unicorns playing the Ladybugs-watch out," to which Sharon had started an all-out snort laugh. Her laugh was contagious because soon he was laughing too. Now, they were at the field in search of the ferocious Unicorn vs. Ladybug t-ball game.

"There," Sharon pointed, "I bet that's the game-red shirts vs. pink shirts," she grinned, as she now pulled Andy along. "Andy, didn't Nicole like things like unicorns?"

Andy gave Sharon a pointed look, "She may have, but I wasn't exactly the model parent then."

Sharon just nodded and patted his arm, "Well, looks like you have another chance. Could be worse-she could be a dancer," Sharon winked. "At least she seems to like something her dad likes," to which Andy grinned. He hadn't thought of it like that yet.

As they reached the correct field, they sat in the bleachers watching the little girls all warm up. They were all so darling, and while it was easy to eliminate half the girls just because they were wearing a red shirt, the problem became finding Ella amid the pink shirts. It sounded terrible to admit they were there to watch their daughter, but they didn't know which one she was. To compound the problem, all the little girls had on hats or batting helmets as they warmed, up, so they were frantically searching to no avail.

The continued to watch, chuckling as they saw little girls picking flowers, singing, dancing, and well, doing anything but warming up. Sharon had her eye on all the girls lined up to bat, and soon, she started chuckling.

"What?" Andy asked, his eyes had been searching over the girls on the field.

Sharon patted Andy's arm and pointed, "I think I found her," she grinned.

Andy looked to where she was pointing, "Where? Which one? Why are you sure-they all have hats on?"

Sharon narrowed down her search to point out the little girl currently warming up at the batting t. She had hit twice as they were watching, both times missing the t, and when she missed the ball for a third time, she swung the bat over her head and pounded it into the ground, almost like she was swinging an axe. She continued to do this, displaying her frustration. The coach quickly ran over, took the bat, and tried to calm her down. She crossed her arms and frowned at him, actually glared at him. During the interaction, Andy had stood in the bleachers to get a better look, and he now looked down at Sharon.

"Now, why do you say that's Ella-the one throwing a fit? Really? Like she couldn't be the sweet one over there picking flowers and giving them to the other team?" he gestured.

Sharon started laughing again as she stood, covering her mouth from laughing, "Oh, Andy, I'm sure that's Ella, the one throwing the fit-STILL. Look at her. Look at her stance," Sharon pointed.

Andy looked again and back at Sharon. He didn't see it, "Yeah?" he questioned.

Sharon looked Andy up and down twice and then nodded her eyes toward Ella. Andy looked at Ella and then back himself, getting frustrated, "Oh, you can't be serious? We have the same stance?" as he was currently standing there in the exact same stance Ella was displaying across the field.

Sure enough Andy had stood and crossed his arms in frustration, and as Sharon looked at both, it was very, very clear they'd found Ella, "Oh, Andy, she's got a temper like you," Sharon chuckled, "Look, she's still pouting she missed the ball." Andy, I'm sorry I'm laughing, but that look, that look there-she's all Flynn.

Andy looked again, and while he didn't like that Sharon was still laughing at his expense and at the notion that he and Ella may look a tad bit alike and act alike, he couldn't help but smile. Andy pulled Sharon into his side and kissed her head, "Well, the Sharon Effect works wonders for my temper, so I'm sure you can work your magic with another Flynn," he smiled.

Sharon smiled up at him, very, very happy, leaned up and kissed him, "I can't wait," she grinned, and the two sat back down to watch the warm up.

"Excuse me," they heard and turned, "Are you Mr. and Mrs. Flynn?" I'm Lisa, Ella's foster mom.

Sharon and Andy jumped up and after a chorus of hellos and thank you's for taking such good care of Ella, the three sat while the game started. They talked throughout the game, which was so helpful for Sharon and Andy.

"If you haven't noticed, Ella has a bit of a short fuse," Lisa smiled, "but a heart of gold."

Sharon chuckled, "That's how we spotted her, but that's nothing I can't handle. I know where she gets it from."

Lisa nodded, "We've enjoyed having her, and she loves baseball. This has been good for her. She's behind in her reading and writing. Apparently, she didn't have any sort of preschool before kindergarten. She's very bright, but right now, that's putting her behind."

Sharon and Andy nodded, taking in all the information about Ella, and Andy spoke up, "So, how many more games does the team have?"

"Three," Lisa added. "Ella was pretty shy before she started playing, but it's helped so much."

"Would it be okay if she finished playing all the games? We'll get her over here for them. If she's enjoyed it, I don't want to take that away. Sharon and I can work something out because it is opposite from where we live."

Lisa smiled, "That would be wonderful! I'm sure she'd like that. Now, we told her we had a surprise for her after the game. She knows she's going to live with her dad tomorrow; we just didn't tell her you were both coming tonight, so when the game is over, would you like to meet her?"

Sharon smiled at Andy, and he returned the smile, "Most definitely," he nodded, "We can't wait."

As soon as the game ended, Sharon and Andy moved quickly to get off the bleachers. They'd discussed a spot off the field to wait for Lisa to come over with Ella. It took a few minutes because they handed out snacks and all, but soon, their brown-eyed little girl was on her way over.

"Ella, there's someone here we want you to meet," Lisa nodded to Sharon and Andy. "Remember Dave and I told you that tomorrow you were going to leave our house and finally get to live with your dad?"

Ella, sucking down a juice box and stuffing animal crackers into her mouth, nodded, "Yup," she said, mouth full of food.

"Ella, this is Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, Andy and Sharon," Lisa explained to her.

Ella's eyes got big, "Flynn?" she said in almost a whisper looking at Lisa, "That's my new name."

Andy and Sharon grinned at her, and Andy leaned down so he was eye level with her, "Hi, Ella. My name is Andy Flynn. I'm a police officer," he started as he pulled out his badge to show her. I'm also your dad," he explained, which drew tears to Sharon's eyes. She waved her hand away to not let herself cry.

While most people would have focused on the "I'm your dad," part, Ella dove in with, "Do you have a gun?"

Andy looked up at Sharon, almost with a look of, "Is she serious?" and Sharon nodded to him, "I do," he smiled, moving his coat away, "See? It's really important to stay away from guns, though, unless you are a police officer," he pointed out. Ella smiled.

"You aren't wearing a uniform," she told him.

Andy grinned, "You're right. Some police officers like me don't wear a uniform. You know what's really silly, though?"

"What?" Ella asked, hopping on one foot.

Andy leaned in toward Ella and pointed up to Sharon, "Sharon, she's a police officer too. She's my boss, so that means she's in charge of me, bosses me around, and tells me what to do."

Ella looked between the two of them, "Nat uh," she said, not believing them.

"It's true," Andy said smiling at her, "Ask her?"

Ella, with her big brown eyes, looked up at Sharon, "Are you a police officer?"

Sharon grinned and was already pulling out her badge, "I am," she said as she leaned down, now next to Andy, "and you know what? My badge is bigger and shinier than your dad's is. That's because I'm his boss. I'm really special," she said, grinning at Andy, as he rolled his eyes at her.

"Can I see it?" Ella asked, putting her hand out.

"Of course, sweetie," she said, handing it over. "It's the prettiest badge I ever saw," she said innocently. Sharon clasped her heart, as she looked at Andy. He patted her arm; Sharon was a goner. Ella had done her in already. "Do you have a gun?"

Sharon nodded, "I do. I keep my gun in my purse because I'm a girl, but you know what-your dad really likes to protect the people he loves. He loves me, and he loves you, so he'll keep us both safe. I'll keep you safe too, but he's really, really good at it," she winked at Andy. They smiled at each other.

"Ella," Sharon started to ask, "can you tell me what is your favorite color?"

Ella made an icky face, "It's not pink. I hate these pink shirts and hats," she said as she flung off the hat onto the ground. Clearly, they were going to have to discuss appropriate reactions to situations.

Sharon chuckled, "Okay, well, that's good to know. Pink isn't my favorite color either. Tell you what-my favorite color is purple. Why don't you ask your dad here what his favorite color is, and then you can tell us yours?"

Ella nodded and turned to Andy, "What's your favorite color?"

"Easy," Andy said, "Purple. She," he pointed at Sharon, "loves purple, and so do I. Let me tell you a secret-I love purple because she looks so beautiful in it."

"I like purple too," Ella stated, "My other favorite color is green."

"Ahhh," Sharon said, "that's a good color. So, have you ever wanted to have a purple and green room?" she asked trying to get some information.

"Your eyes are green," she pointed at Sharon, "but I can't see them with those glasses."

Sharon smiled at Andy and took her glasses off, "Better?" she asked.

Ella grinned and nodded, "Yup. I'd like a purple and green room."

Andy put his hands out, "Well, you are in luck. We have a purple and green room, and it's all setup for a five-year-old girl. Would you like to come and live with us in the purple and green room?"

"Does it have a stuffed animal monkey in it?" she asked.

Sharon looked toward Lisa, not knowing if the room SHOULD or SHOULDN'T have a stuffed monkey. Lisa nodded, so Sharon looked at Ella, "Yes, I believe it does have a stuffed monkey. Do you like monkeys?"

"Yes!" Ella jumped, "Like George the monkey, Curious George."

"Ahh," Sharon and Andy said to each other as the turned back to Ella, "Well, we might be able to find some Curious George books too," Sharon said.

Ella frowned, "I can't read yet," she huffed.

"Oh, that's okay," Sharon smiled. "I'm really good at teaching kids how to read, and so is your dad. We've done it before."

Ella looked up, "You have?" They nodded. "Do you have other kids too?"

Andy held out his hand, "Five other kids. You make number six, and all five of your brothers and sisters are so excited to meet you. Now, you are the youngest, but that's pretty cool because you get three brothers and two sisters. So, you're pretty special because you make it even now-three boys and three girls. We're relieved. It could have been another boy," Andy said making a silly icky face.

Ella laughed. She had a sweet laugh. "You're old. Are you my grandpa?" she asked Andy.

Sharon gripped Andy's shoulder for fear of laughing. Andy gave her a "really" look before he spoke, "No, I'm not your grandpa, Ella. I'm your dad. I've got all this gray hair because Sharon makes me work so hard being a police officer," he said as he made a silly face at her.

"She's not old," Ella pointed to Sharon, "She doesn't have gray hair."

Andy leaned over and whispered loud enough for Sharon to hear, "Yes she does. She just puts color in it to make it pretty," and he winked at Ella. Ella looked at Sharon, and Sharon put bunny ears on Andy. Ella laughed at that.

Ella was quiet a minute before she spoke again, "I can't write Flynn yet," she admitted, getting quiet.

Sharon and Andy looked up at Lisa, who jumped in, "We told Ella she had a new last name, and we were practicing it after school. She's having trouble with the y."

Andy and Sharon nodded, as Ella spoke up, "F L Y- I can't remember the rest," she pouted.

Andy put his hand under her chin to bring it up, "Hey, it's okay. It's exciting to have a new name. I can help you spell it. It's my name too. It' N. You know, you should ask Sharon to help you with it. It's her new last name too. She just got it not that long ago."

"You did?" Ella perked up.

Sharon nodded, "I did, and you know what-I still mess it up sometimes. Sometimes, I still start to sign the wrong last name, so we'll help you with it."

"Ella," Lisa asked, "so, tomorrow after school, Dave and I are going to pack up your things so you can go live with them. Are you excited now about going to live with your dad and Sharon?"

Ella looked up at them, "Sharon, are you my mom now?" she asked.

Sharon smiled brightly at Ella, "Well, what do you want to call me?"

Ella thought a moment, "Well, they said my mom isn't coming back. She did bad things, and moms aren't supposed to be bad. I need a mom-a good mom, not a bad guy one. All the girls in my class have a mom, so can you be my mom?"

Sharon now did have tears in her eyes, and she felt Andy pat her back, "Of course, sweetie. You can call me whatever you want."

Ella looked up at Lisa, "Do I get to stay with them forever, or do I have to leave again?"

Lisa smiled, as she glanced at Andy and Sharon who were smiling, "You get to live with them forever, Ella."

Ella grinned, "Can I bring my bat? Baseball is my favorite."

Andy leaned back into Ella, "Baseball is my favorite too. We'll make sure you have a bat."

Ella lunged forward, taking them off guard, and she hugged Andy and Sharon together, "See you tomorrow," she said, pulled back and ran off. The meet-n-greet was apparently over.

Lisa grinned, "That's the best mood she's been in for awhile. I'll call you later tonight, okay?"

Sharon and Andy nodded, watching as Ella ran over to grab a bat and try swinging again. She missed every time, causing Sharon and Andy to stand there chuckling. They watched her until Dave and Lisa packed things up and waved as they left.

"So, Dad," Sharon teased, as she messed with his shirt, "I think we have a busy evening."

Andy raised his eyebrows, wondering what Sharon was thinking, "Enroll her in dance? She can't hit the ball to save her life!" he sighed.

Sharon chuckled as she continued to mess with his shirt, "Well, she just needs her dad to teach her. No, I was thinking we need a shopping spree at the mall. We've made a promise; now we need to deliver. We need to outfit a purple and green room and find a stuffed monkey by tomorrow afternoon."


	10. Chapter 10

Sharon felt like she was being watched. She cracked open an eye to find a set of brown eyes staring back at her, and they weren't the normal brown eyes she was used to seeing early in the morning. Similar, but not the same.

"What's wrong, Sweetie?" she sat up in bed, trying to whisper. Andy was still sleeping soundly.

"I'm hungry for breakfast," she said sweetly. Sharon sighed and looked at the clock-6:45. Well, gone were the days of sleeping in at all on a weekend. At least this was a much better reason than a murder investigation.

"Well, let's get you fed," Sharon offered, as she got out of bed and padded out of the room, indicating for Ella to follow her.

Once Sharon closed their bedroom door, she looked down at Ella and had to try hard not to chuckle. Apparently, Ella was used to getting dressed as soon as she woke up. She currently had on mismatched socks, striped shorts, and a long sleeve rather hideous neon green polka dot shirt on backwards. She hadn't come with a lot of clothing, which was something they would tackle over the next few days, but she seemed to have made a mess of what she had.

"So, I see you picked out your own clothes?" she grinned, as she held out her hand for Ella to take. Ella seemed to like holding hands; she'd been doing it since Cynthia brought her to their house the night before. That, or she was still scared.

"So," Sharon asked, as the two reached the kitchen, "what do you like to eat for breakfast?"

"Pretzels," Ella offered. Sharon turned and raised her eyebrows.

"Pretzels?" she asked.

Ella nodded, "Yup, Mommy-the one in jail, she used to give me pretzels for breakfast everyday. She'd bring them home from work, off the big airplanes."

Sharon rolled her eyes, thinking this was just great. The bad habits were going to be hard to break. Sharon smiled sweetly at Ella, "Well, that's more of a snack food here at Daddy's house. Do you know what Daddy loves for breakfast?"

"What?" Ella asked.

"Pancakes. Want to help me make pancakes?" Sharon asked.

"No, you can make them," Ella said as she hopped on one foot in the kitchen. "I'll see if they are good."

Sharon sighed, oh this was going to be interesting.

"You know what is silly-Daddy doesn't like bacon. Do you like bacon?" Sharon asked.

Ella shrugged, "I don't know. Are you going to burn it? My jail Mommy always burned it."

Sharon covered her face with her hands. This weekend was going to be an adjustment. Last night had been interesting. Backing up even further, Sharon and Andy had left the t-ball game and gone straight to the mall. Two hours later, they closed the place down, buying whatever they could find to pull off the purple and green room theme. They'd found most everything, except for the monkey.

"Andy, we told her there would be a stuffed animal monkey! How, in a city the size of Los Angeles, can we not find a monkey?" she huffed.

"Sharon, relax," he pulled her close. "You're just nervous. We both are. We want things to go well, to be perfect, and she's going to love us no matter what. We'll find a monkey. We won't find one tonight, but we'll find one."

"Andy, we don't have time. She's coming after school tomorrow!" Sharon exclaimed.

"Trust me," he had winked.

And, that was how yesterday, the elite Major Crimes squad was almost stumped on a case-The Case of the Missing Monkey, but after two hours, Buzz jumped up, "I've got something, Lieutenant!"

An hour after that, Marvin the Monkey made his way to his new home in the front seat of an LAPD police cruiser. He'd earned his name later that night when Ella had met him.

Cynthia had finally arrived after Sharon had pestered Andy for at least 20 minutes with the, "Is she here yet?" as he kept watch at the window. When Cynthia finally arrived, the two had to restrain themselves from running out and swooping Ella up in a huge hug. They held back and greeted the two at the door.

"I'm moving in," Ella announced, her first words to them in greeting, as she walked right on in the house, like she'd been there before. Sharon gripped Andy's shoulder, holding in her laughter. "Hotdogs for dinner."

Cynthia chuckled, "Well, I think she's going to do just fine here."

"Ella, what do you want to see first?" Sharon asked sweetly.

"My room, duh!" she laughed as she acted like she was karate chopping a table.

Andy eyed Sharon, "Well, your room awaits," as Andy encouraged Ella to follow him. Both Andy and Sharon were nervous about her seeing her room. They hoped she liked it. The walls were gray, but they had found some pretty purple and gray bedding with green accent pillows to match. Sharon had found some curtains in the same green, so the room was shaping up to be cute. They'd also found a sweet little white lamp with a purple shade. Stuff on the walls would come, but for now, it was a good start. It was pretty empty, void of much "stuff" because they really wanted to see what Ella had and what interests she expressed.

"Oh, hi Marvin," she said as she walked into the bedroom like she'd been in it a thousand times. She haphazardly waved to the monkey, the only toy in the room, sitting right on the bed.

"Marvin?" Andy asked, still nervous she wouldn't like her room.

"Duh, Daddy," she giggled, "Marvin!" she pointed to the monkey.

"Ohhh," Andy said, catching on. "Well, how do you know his name is Marvin?"

"You just know. That's his name," she said spinning around in circles.

"Ella, do you like your room?" Cynthia asked, smiling at how cute it was.

"Yeah," Ella shrugged, "but it needs toys, lots of toys."

Once Ella had met Marvin, they took her around the house, showing them all the different rooms.

"Is this your bedroom?" Ella asked going inside Sharon and Andy's room.

"Yup," Andy answered, "It's our room, so you can get us anytime you need during the night."

"Will there be other people in here?" Ella asked.

The three adults looked at each other, not understanding her question. Luckily, she continued.

"Mommy always had different people in her bedroom," she said matter of fact.

Sharon and Andy shook their heads at each other, "No, Ella," Andy said firmly, "In this house, just Mommy and Daddy in the bedroom-there won't be other people coming over to go in there. You have a room, Rusty has a room, and there's a room for your other brothers and sisters when they visit."

"When are the hotdogs going to be ready?" Ella asked, obviously moving onto the next conversation.

Cynthia looked at them, "Well, I'm going to get going. I know you two well enough that if you need anything, let me know. I'll check in to see how things are going, but congratulations and good luck."

Once they helped Cynthia to the door, they turned to see Ella had walked off.

"Andy, where did she go?" she asked.

"Calm down, she's fine. Sharon, she's going to be walking around the house from now on. Let's go see. Maybe she's in her room."

They walked to her room, and she was in there, with her suitcase open and all clothes dumped out of it.

"Oh, Ella," Sharon said, "you didn't need to dump that, Sweetheart. We'll put it away. We can go through it and figure out what you have. I'll fold all your stuff for you."

"I know," Ella said, "that's why I dumped it-so you could put everything away. Are the hotdogs ready?"

Sharon and Andy eyed each other again and sighed. An adjustment; it was going to be an adjustment. Luckily, they had spoken to Lisa on the phone the night before, and she'd told them Ella had picked up some pretty bad eating habits from her mother. They had tried to fix it, but Ella was a bit stubborn. Lisa had also said that after they left the baseball field, Ella had told them she was having hotdogs at her new house. That was news to Sharon and Andy, but they had stopped at the store today to get them. One night of hotdogs wouldn't be the end of the world, and they needed something to ease the transition.

Sharon had requested Rusty's presence at dinner that night, warning him it was "Hotdog Night." Rusty had doubled over in laughter at the idea of Sharon willingly serving hotdogs for dinner.

"Sharon, what's even funnier than you making hotdogs for dinner is Andy the Vegetarian eating them!" he laughed.

Hotdog night proved to be the roaring success Ella had envisioned. She ate two hotdogs, but to Sharon's dismay, not much else. They wouldn't push it tonight, but they were going to work on much better eating habits for Ella. If they'd done it for a 15-year-old boy, improved his eating habits, they could certainly do it for a five-year-old girl.

"Why is your name Rusty?" Ella had asked at dinner, catching Rusty off guard.

Rusty shrugged as he looked at her. He was a bit nervous too. He'd never had a younger sibling, "Why is your name Ella?"

"Because my jail mom named me that," she said.

Rusty nodded, "Well, same here." Andy and Sharon looked away in laughter.

"Why do you call Daddy and Mommy Andy and Sharon?" Ella asked. She was full of questions for Rusty, and he already seemed to be growing weary of them. He looked over to Sharon and Andy, who sat there, almost amused at the interaction.

"Why do you call them Daddy and Mommy?" Rusty asked.

"Because I like it," she fired back.

"Me too. Because I like it," Rusty smiled.

"Maybe I'll call them Andy and Sharon," she added.

"I don't know if I would do that," Rusty said easily, "then, no one would know they are your Mommy and Daddy. Plus, you don't want them to forget their names. They are old."

Andy groaned, shaking his head, but Ella replied, "Yeah, Daddy is really old. I could almost call him Grandpa."

As Sharon mixed the pancake batter for breakfast, she chuckled at Ella's comment about Andy being old. Oh, this kid. She was going to keep them on their toes. Sharon glanced up to see what Ella was doing now.

"Ella, why are you licking the door to the outside?" Sharon asked, annoyed as she walked over to the door, shooing her away from it.

"I'm pretending to be a doggie," she said, "Woof!" she jumped.

Sharon sighed. Andy's presence would be great right now, "Well, come sit. I've almost got breakfast ready. We don't lick the doors or the furniture," she told her.

"What show are we going to watch?" she asked.

Sharon turned around, confusion on her face, "Show?"

"Yeah, during breakfast. I always sit on the floor in front of the tv to eat my breakfast-the pretzels. What show are we going to watch?" she asked.

Sharon guided her to the kitchen table where they had bought a kid's placemat for her, now her seat at the table, "Well, we aren't going to watch tv while we eat. We're a family, and we eat together at the table. This is your seat, just like last night. You sit here, Rusty sits, there, Daddy sits over there, and I sit her," she said. "When your other brothers and sisters are here, we make room for them. Now, if you sit, I'll get you some pancakes, bacon, and even a glass of milk."

"Yuck," Ella said, holding her nose, "Milk stinks. Are we having hotdogs for dinner again?"

Sharon smiled, "No hotdogs tonight. Daddy said he wanted to make spaghetti. You'll love his spaghetti. He's a very good cook, and yes, you are going to drink some milk. It's good for you, and it's healthy."

"You can't boss me around," Ella frowned, crossing her arms, visibly mad.

"Oh, yes she can," Andy added to the conversation as he walked into the kitchen, still yawning. He raised his eyes to Sharon, wondering what he'd walked in on. In an attempt to keep things from escalating, he leaned down and kissed Ella on her forehead, "Morning Pumpkin. One thing you need to know-Mommy can boss all of us around. She's the boss at work, and well, I even let her be the boss at home," he whispered, winking at Sharon. "So, if she can boss me around at work, she can boss you around at home."

Andy's tact worked. Ella dropped her arms, "I don't like that," she said.

Andy shrugged, "I know, but we need to listen to Mommy. She's a good one, and she does love you, loves us both."

"Hmmm," Ella grunted, as Sharon brought over breakfast. She leaned down and kissed Andy good morning, whispering, "Thank you."

"Ewwww," Ella exclaimed! "Kissing! Yuck!"

"Ella, we are going to get along great," another voice added to the conversation, "I say that all the time," Rusty said as he sleepily walked to the coffee pot. "Morning guys," he waved to Sharon and Andy.

"Morning, Rusty," they both smiled at him.

"So, Ella, what are you doing today?" Rusty asked, like a five-year-old had a schedule for the day.

"Getting toys," she said simply. "I saw a cartoon where a kid moved, and the moving truck came to his new house with toys. There's no moving truck here. I watched out the window last night from my room. It never came. I need to get toys."

"When I came to live with them, they didn't buy me toys," Rusty grinned, obviously stirring things up. Sharon and Andy glared at him. "Sharon just bought me clothes, lots of clothes. Andy kept buying me food all the time-taking me out for burgers."

"I like hamburgers and French Fries!" Ella exclaimed and turned to Andy, "Daddy, since you took Rusty for hamburgers, you have to take me too. I just came to live with you, and I want hamburgers. Hamburgers for lunch and hotdogs again for dinner. Mommy, these pancakes are too fluffy. Marvin won't even eat them," she made a face.

The death look Andy and Sharon gave Rusty almost made him want to crawl out of the kitchen, almost. Instead, he just flashed his biggest grin. It was going to be a long day.


	11. Chapter 11

"Are you my grandpa? You're old," Ella said bluntly as she sat on the couch looking at Provenza. Patrice sat next to him, eyeing Sharon. Both women tried to keep it in, but they burst out laughing. Catching the fever, Andy started laughing too, as Ella looked around.

"Flynn! This isn't funny. I'm just two years older than you are," he waved his hand. Patrice patted his arm.

"No, Ella," Sharon smiled, "He is Daddy's best friend."

"He's old, really old," she scrunched up her face. "What's your name?"

"Lieutenant Provenza," he replied easily. Patrice smacked his arm.

"Louie! She's a child. She doesn't need to call you that," Patrice admonished.

"Your name is Louie? Okay," she said and got off the couch. "Louie, I'm going to get Marvin so you can meet him," she said as she jumped off the couch and ran off.

Provenza looked to Patrice, "She just called me Louie!" he exclaimed. Sharon and Andy continued to laugh, and Patrice made a face at him.

"Well, that's your name. You can't seriously expect a five-year-old to call you Lieutenant Provenza, Lieutenant, or even Provenza. She's not a suspect, and she'd barely be able to say Provenza," Patrice added.

"I'll correct her," Sharon said as she eyed Andy again, and the laughing started all over.

"No, Sharon, it's fine. Let her be. Louie can deal with it. His own grandkids have to call him Lieutenant. Time he gets a taste of his own medicine," Patrice nodded to Provenza. He grunted.

"Louie, this is Marvin! Say hi!" Ella jumped right into Provenza's lap, causing him to moan.

"Ella, don't jump on people like that," Sharon corrected her.

"Marvin's a monkey?" Provenza asked.

"Duh!" she said.

"Ella!" Andy exclaimed. "Do not talk to adults like that, you hear me? We've talked about this already this weekend."

"Daddy, that was Marvin talking," Ella tried with Andy.

"Ella, unless Marvin wants to go to time out, along with you, you'll both stop saying that," he corrected her.

"Hmm," she grunted, "I don't like that. Louie, Mommy told me this morning she's the boss of me."

Provenza rose his eyebrows, turning toward Andy. Patrice started laughing, "Oh Honey, she's the boss of all the guys at work. She's a really important lady. If she says she's the boss, she is. You had better listen. Tell you a secret," Patrice waved Ella toward her, and Ella walked over. Patrice spoke loudly enough for everyone to her, "I'm the boss of Louie at home. I make him eat vegetables and healthy stuff." Patrice winked at her.

"Eeew, I don't like that stuff either. Louie, why do you like her if she makes you eat vegetables. Yuck!" Ella made a gross face.

Provenza looked right at her, "Well, why do you like your mom and dad? They make you eat that stuff too."

"Cause you have to like your mom and dad. Did you bring me any toys? Daddy said we were going shopping later today. I need toys. Mommy said I need clothes, but I don't want clothes. I want toys," she said to him.

Provenza shrugged his shoulders, "I have no idea. I hate shopping. Your mom and dad they love shopping for clothes. Maybe he will get you some suspenders like he wears. Want some of those?"

"He's not wearing suspenders," Ella said as she looked to Andy. Andy rolled his eyes, and Sharon chuckled again.

"He'll wear them on Monday. Watch. You know why-your mom likes him in suspenders. He didn't wear them until he liked your mom, and then, he started wearing them every day," Provenza added.

"I like Mommy, and I don't want to wear suspenders," she pouted.

"Yeah, well, don't tell her, but I like your mommy too-not like your daddy does, but I don't want to wear suspenders either," Provenza noted, trying to dig himself out of this conversation. The other three adults were laughing at the absurdity of it.

"Another eeew thing, Louie-Mommy and Daddy were kissing this morning-yuck! In the kitchen!" she exclaimed.

"Ella, I feel the same way. I don't want to see your mommy and daddy kissing either," he motioned her closer, "Ella," he whispered but everyone could hear, "Sometimes they kiss at work."

"Eeewww!" she said. "Gross Mommy and Daddy."

"Exactly, Ella," Provenza smiled. "I know-ask Patrice about toys. She's a good toy shopper," he nodded to Ella.

Ella walked over to Patrice, "You're pretty. Why do you like Louie? He's old."

"Ella!" both Andy and Sharon said at the same time.

Patrice waved them off, "Louie might be older, but he's a really good guy. He loves so many people, even if he pretends not to. He was one of your brother, Rusty's, first friends. Ask Rusty about him. He'll tell you. Now, I might have something for you that I found at the store, but first, you need to introduce me to Marvin."

Ella grabbed Marvin, "He's a monkey, but he hates bananas," she said as if he was a real person. "He likes only ice cream. I told Mommy that, and she wouldn't give him any ice cream. She was mean," she frowned at Sharon.

"Oh, she can be really mean, Ella, so you better be a good girl. She, your daddy, and Louie all put bad guys in jail. You wouldn't want that," Patrice smiled at her.

Ella shrugged, "Marvin would get me out."

"Well, Ella, I think we might have found a dollhouse for you. Do you like dollhouses?" Patrice asked.

Ella's eyes got big, "Does it have a dishwasher?"

Patrice, Sharon, Andy, and Provenza all looked at each other, puzzled, "Ella, no, it doesn't. Why do you ask?"

"Good dollhouses have a dishwasher," she explained.

"Ella!" Sharon and Andy both yelled again. Ella turned to Andy.

"Ella, that is not nice. They brought you a present. You need to be polite and say thank-you. A dollhouse doesn't have to have a dishwasher to be nice. Now," he said clearly.

"Thank you," she said, pouting. "Is it here?"

Patrice smiled, "Yes, Sweetie, it's here. While you were meeting me and Louie, your dad moved it to the play area for you."

Patrice barely got that out, and Ella took off running with Marvin, "Gotta find Marvin's room!" she exclaimed looking for the dollhouse.

"Well," Patrice said, eyebrows raised, looking at Sharon. Provenza shook his head at Andy. "Well, she is going to be a handful," Patrice chuckled.

Sharon nodded, "Sorry about all that. We're giving her a crash course in manners. Nothing like starting five years too late, but at least we're working on it."

"Flynn, I may have found someone more annoying than you," he nodded, "yup, figures she'd be your kid."

The four laughed and chatted for a bit before Sharon and Patrice got lunch ready. Patrice and Provenza had been invited over for lunch to meet Ella. They didn't want to overload Ella, but she was going to have to start getting to know the people in their lives. They thought that a weekend of Rusty, Provenza, and Patrice was a good start to her family crash course. She'd meet Nicole and family next weekend; they were out of town this weekend, and the rest would come soon too.

As the group sat down to eat the turkey sandwiches, macaroni salad, pasta salad, and pretzels for Ella, she made a face.

"What's up kiddo?" Andy asked sitting next to her.

"I want a hotdog," she crossed her arms.

"Ella, we aren't eating hotdogs every day. You can try the turkey. You don't need to eat it on the bread if you don't want to, but that's a normal lunch, one you'll take to school. There's all different salads, even macaroni to try. You can have pretzels if you try some of the other things," Sharon commented.

Ella participated in a stare down with Sharon until finally she took a bite of the macaroni salad when Patrice produced the brownies she'd brought over for dessert. Patrice just mentioned, casually and coincidently to Andy and Provenza that she had brownies, and then she just happened to open them and put them on the table, the open spot on the table, by Ella. It worked.

Patrice helped Sharon clean up the kitchen while Andy and Provenza took Ella into the backyard. Andy had gotten out the t-ball set he'd bought her, and for once, she was content.

"Sharon, I'm not going to say if you need help, but when you need help, you call me. I have a feeling Ella and I are going to have some interesting afternoons when I watch her for you," she chuckled.

"Patrice, I'm sorry about this. Hopefully, her attitude will improve. I know it's a big adjustment-I couldn't imagine, but your help-both of your help-means the world. We're so grateful for your friendship," she smiled at Patrice.

"Sharon, glad to help. We both know I've had my share of kid and grandkid problems. I can't wait to hear about your shopping trip today. Something tells me she's going to have some opinions."


	12. Chapter 12

"I don't like wearing dresses," Ella crossed her arms, as the trio stood in the store looking at the kids' clothing options.

Sharon bent down, "Listen, sweetie, I know you would prefer to wear jeans all the time, but you're going to have to wear some skirts for school, and you'll need a dress each week for church. That's the rule. We can get you some jeans and other things, but you have to pick out a few dresses."

Ella frowned and stomped her foot, "I hate these clothes," she made a face.

Andy bent down, "Listen, kiddo. I know this is tough, and this is new for all of us, but we're a family. It's going to take some time for all of us to get used to each other. You know, when Mommy and Daddy first worked together, we didn't even like each other, and now, we love each other so much. We love you too. So, let's pick out some clothes-let Mommy help you pick out some clothes, and then maybe we can get a treat."

Ella grunted as she stomped again. Sharon looked to Andy and rolled her eyes; Ella was trying their patience quite a bit.

"Need some help shopping for your granddaughter?" the sales associate asked as she walked up, smiling.

"That's Daddy and Mommy!" Ella almost yelled back, enough that the adults all jumped. Sharon patted Ella's shoulders, trying to calm her down.

"Oh, I am so sorry!" the salesclerk said. "My apologies. Can I help you with anything?"

"No," Sharon shook her head, "we're just fine. Thank you."

"So, Ella," Andy asked again after they had been interrupted, "what's it going to be? Are you going to help Mommy and get a treat when we finish, or is she going to pick stuff without you that you might not like?"

Ella looked up to them, gauging if they were serious, "No pink," she crossed her arms.

"No pink," Sharon nodded to Andy, grinning, as they had made some progress. "Well, let's see what we can find with no pink."

A half hour later, the trio emerged from the store. Sharon loved shopping, but this had been quite the trying experience. They had found several shirts and a couple pairs of jeans for Ella, ones that fit. Everything she had with her had been too small or just not appropriate. It seemed that they had a much different clothing style than from what Linda had dressed her. That was also going to be another habit to break; they didn't see a need to dress a five-year-old in clothes most 25 year olds wanted to wear. Besides the jeans, they'd found four dresses for Ella, all of which, she seemed to like once they got past the no pink and added-no ruffles requirements. It turned out that Ella liked navy blue in dresses, and that had been easy to find.

'Should we get some ice cream?" Andy asked, as both he and Sharon held Ella's hand.

"Marvin wants chocolate," Ella said, even though Marvin hadn't come to the mall.

"Okay, does that mean you want chocolate too?" Andy asked, shaking his head at Sharon.

"No, I want vanilla. Marvin wants chocolate," she stated.

"Well, Marvin isn't here. We're getting ice cream for you, Mommy, and me-no Marvin," Andy told her.

"Then, I don't want ice cream," Ella commented, testing them.

"Fine," Sharon answered, smiling at her. "Let's just go then," she offered.

"To the toy store?" she asked.

"Oh no," Sharon commented, "I was really looking forward to ice cream because I'm kind of tired. I wanted some ice cream first before going to the toy store, but if we aren't getting ice cream, then I guess we'll just go home. I'm a little tired to just go to the toy store."

"Well, I guess I will eat the ice cream," Ella said not seeing the almost laugh Sharon and Andy shared. She was a stubborn kid.

"Oh great," Sharon smiled. "I'm sure we can stop at the toy store after we have some ice cream," she winked at Andy.

By the time the trio arrived at home later that afternoon, Sharon and Andy weren't sure they were going to make it into the house; they were absolutely exhausted and felt like surrendering themselves to the car for sleep. Ella seemed to be of the opposite opinion.

"Daddy! Will you set up my ant farm?" she asked, almost pulling him out of the car. The trip to the toy store had been interesting, and Andy and Sharon found themselves learning a lot about their new daughter. While she loved the dollhouse Patrice and Provenza had gotten her, she wasn't into princesses and overly girlie things. She wanted a few small dolls, but nothing over the top. She preferred things like ant farms and even a few trucks. Since Andy and Sharon had almost no toys at their house, they found themselves getting quite a few things. They insisted on some learning type things-an art set, a few board games, and a learning toy, but otherwise, they let Ella's mind wander in the store. Now, they were home, and the ant farm was at the top of her list.

"Ella, let us start dinner, and then I'll help you. Why don't we get all these bags in the house, and then you can take the toys up to your room, okay? After dinner, we'll sit down and open everything."

"Hotdogs," Ella jumped in front of Andy.

"No," he shook his finger at her, "spaghetti tonight. No hotdogs."

Ella pouted, and Sharon spoke, "Ella, we are not going to put up with you throwing a fit everyday about hotdogs. You can eat the spaghetti or not, but we won't be making hotdogs," she stated.

Ella grabbed a few of the toy bags, grunting at them, before she walked in the house.

Sharon walked over to Andy, who was standing there, exhausted, and trying to find the energy to walk inside, "You know," she said sweetly, "I like being a parent with you."

Andy raised his eyebrows, "Really? I'm not doing a good job," he shook his head.

Sharon leaned up and kissed him sweetly, "You're doing an amazing, job, Andy. Amazing. She's quite the handful. Opinionated, stubborn," she kissed his neck.

"Don't know where that all comes from," he acted surprised.

Sharon laughed into his chest, as she stood there, "Oh, me either. Never had to deal with an opinionated or stubborn Flynn before."

"Oh," Andy smacked his head, "that's why you are so great with her. You're used to putting Flynns in their place," he grinned.

Sharon smiled at him, "Well, maybe, but the good news is that part of the reason I'm so good at knowing and dealing with Flynn behavior is that I love all those crazy, opinionated, stubborn Flynns very much."

"You do?" he grinned, wrapping his arms around her.

"Oh, most definitely," she winked. "We can talk later," she grinned as she moved away and started into the house.

"Killing me here, Sharon," he chuckled, as he got the rest of the bags.

Dinner passed without major incident. Aside from having to correct Ella constantly about eating spaghetti with her hands, it went pretty well. It was hard not to like Andy's spaghetti, and Ella ate it without complaining. Progress.

"Daddy! The ant farm," Ella begged, pulling him toward the stairs.

"Hold on," he stopped, "we help Mommy with the dishes-all of us, so you can help too."

Ella grumbled through that, but she did what she had been asked, and finally, Andy followed Ella to take care of the ant farm.

Sharon finished and followed behind them, just a few minutes later. Before she got to Ella's room, she heard her complaining.

"It's no fair. I want ants now!" she exclaimed.

Sharon walked in, "What's going on?" she smiled, and that smile dropped off quickly as she surveyed the room. Ella had torn open every single box that had purchased. All the toys were scattered everywhere, hidden in cardboard. It was going to take some effort to clean it up. Thank goodness, Sharon had put the games on the table downstairs."

"Well, have we discussed this issue," she waved to Andy indicating the room.

"Oh yeah," he replied as he sighed, "She's picking it up now. Seems she is mad because the ant farm doesn't come with live ants. We have to order them, but I told her we would do that this week."

"Of course," she smiled, "I'm sorry sweetie, that it doesn't have the live ants, but you wouldn't want them to die in the box there. We'll get them ordered."

"I want them now," she stomped.

"Well, if you want us to order any at all, you'll clean up this room like Daddy asked. Then, we are getting you a bath before bed. You start a new school Monday, and you've had a lot going on this weekend, so you need some rest."

Ella eyed Sharon, "Marvin is going to keep me up all night. You'll see," she said. Sharon and Andy rolled their eyes; it was going to be a long night.

By Monday morning, both Sharon and Andy were ready for a nap, a long one. They'd spent two hours at Ella's new school, the same Catholic school Emily, Ricky, and Rusty had attended, getting her setup. It helped a great deal that Sharon and even Andy, from dealing with Rusty, were familiar with the school. They had a lot of paperwork to complete, spoke to the school's counselor, and they met her teacher. The let everyone know that Ella seemed to be quite the handful, but they were working through everything as a family. By the time they arrived at the office, just after 9:00, they were ready for the day to end.

"Flynn, you sick?" Provenza asked noting he didn't look well.

"No!" he grumbled "Exhausted. She's completely exhausted both of us," he sighed.

Provenza looked up to Sharon's office, and saw she was seated at her desk, her head bent in her hands. She looked it too.

The team chuckled as they glanced around, "Who knew it would only take a five-year-old to break them both," Provenza chuckled.

Andy gave him a nasty look, as the rest of the team laughed.

"What's she like, Lieutenant?" Amy asked nicely.

"Stubborn, bossy, opinionated, but smart as a whip," he blurted out. "She's a handful."

"Sir, if I may, that almost sounds like yours and the Captain's kid if you had one-all those traits-well, put together, I'm sure that's fun," Julio laughed.

Andy looked at the team, "Laugh it up, all of you," he waved his hand, "She's still amazing," he smiled.

"Ahhh, she's hooked you," Amy smiled.

"Never thought I'd see the day another female caught Flynn's eye," he said, looking uninterested. "Thought he only had eyes for the Captain."

The team chuckled again, and Andy rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah, back to work. I'll be glad to have any of you babysit sometime and tell her she can do anything she wants when you are there. Then, you'll see. First, I have to order live ants for some ant farm," he sighed as the team got back to work.

Sharon noticed the team was all talking to Andy, and she guessed they were asking all about Ella. Oh, life was interesting now, that's for sure. Ella had blown into their lives, and they were all getting a crash course. She smiled, though, thinking at what a great little girl they had. Yes, she had some behavior issues, but that was to be expected. Rusty certainly hadn't been easy, and she grinned now thinking at how far he'd come. Ella would be similar; they'd work through everything with her.

As Sharon's mind continued to wander, she shook her head at last night. Last night, she and Andy, both while tired, had retired to bed early to spend some time together. They hadn't gotten very far, before Ella flopped Marvin on the bed and had climbed on it too. Both Sharon and Andy froze, glad it was dark, both still clothed, but still.

"Marvin doesn't like my room-eeew, Daddy, what are you doing?" she asked. It was late, too late for Ella to be up, now past 11:00. They had checked on her over an hour ago, and they'd also shut their bedroom door. She seemed to be able to move around without making a sound.

Sharon and Andy shifted quickly, and the two sat up to address Ella.

"Ella, why are you up? Did you have a bad dream?" Sharon asked, finding her glasses.

"Nope, just been talking to Marvin," she nodded. They knew she'd been asleep for awhile, so they weren't sure what woke her up. He wants a different room. We'll take this one," she added.

"Ella, this is our room; you have your room," Andy said as Sharon got out of bed to take Ella back to her room.

"Come on, Ella," Sharon held out her hand, but Ella stayed on the bed. Apparently, Ella had been serious when she said Marvin would keep her up.

"I want to have this room. It's better than my room," she pouted.

"Well, I was planning to paint this room pink," Sharon said casually, shrugging.

Ella jumped off the bed and held her nose, "Eeew, pink," she made a face. "Yuck."

Andy mouthed a "thank you" to Sharon, as she winked at him. He chuckled while she walked Ella back to her room.

As Sharon sat now in her office, thinking over the weekend, she let out her breath. Oh, this was going to be quite the change, but worth it in the end.


	13. Chapter 13

**While this chapter is short, I hope you'll enjoy. I had this idea about Ella for a week or so now.**

Ella had been with them now a month, and it had been quite a month of transition. Not only was it a lot of change for Ella, it was for Sharon and Andy too. Gone were their Friday night date nights, nice, leisurely dinners at their favorite restaurants, but in place they now had school schedules, pick up times, after school care, homework, and the demands of a little girl. They loved it.

Sharon and Andy had been wanting to find a way for Ella to meet Emily. She'd now met the whole family, except Emily. Ricky had come down for a visit the weekend after she'd come to live with them. She loved Ricky, telling Sharon and Andy just the other day, he was her favorite. They weren't sure why, but he had a quirky personality, and she laughed a lot with Ricky. She liked Andy's son, Charlie, a lot too, but he'd only been by once so far. Rusty was around quite a bit, and she liked him just fine, but there had been something about Ricky she adored. She'd gotten along okay with Nicole and Dean's boys, but she had been a bit jealous at them stealing time from Andy and Sharon. Both had to sit down with her later to explain that they loved her just as much as her brothers and sisters, and they also had enough room for Nicole and Dean's boys.

"It's not fair," she had said at bedtime the night after she'd met Nicole, Dean, and the boys, "You're not their daddy. I don't like you playing games with them, playing baseball with them, and letting them climb all over you," she pouted.

"Ella, you know how sometimes people think I'm your grandpa?" Andy had asked.

Ella nodded, as she continued to pout in bed, "Well, l am their grandpa. Grandpas are allowed to love their grandkids, and it doesn't mean they love their kids any less. I love you so much. I can love them too. You're really lucky and special because you are almost all the same age. You get to grow up with them. Most people don't grow up with their nephews or their aunt; you're really special."

"I only want you to play baseball with me," she complained.

"Hey, baseball is better with more people. We're lucky you all love baseball. Imagine if they didn't like baseball? They also do ballet. Want to do that too?" he'd asked.

"NO!" she yelled, "That's a girl thing with pink outfits. Yuck!" she'd told him.

"Your sister does ballet for her job. She's a ballerina," he'd told her.

"Mommy told me and showed me her pictures. I hate her costume-the pink ones. She has some other pictures with pretty costumes, but the pink is icky," she'd held her nose again.

Now, here they were a month later, and the three were on their way to New York to meet the icky ballerina. Ella had a couple days off school for parent/teacher conferences, so Andy and Sharon decided they needed Ella to meet the last member of the family.

"I can't wait to get on the airplane!" she yelled as they walked into the airport. "I'm going to pick the best seat," she said carrying Marvin in her hand. "Marvin hasn't flown before, and he wants to know if the plane has bananas?"

"No bananas," Sharon smiled, "and, you can't pick your seat. We have assigned seats just like you do at school. I think you're going to love your big sister, Emily," Sharon smiled, "She's a lot of fun, and I know she can't wait to meet you. Tomorrow night, we get to go watch her dance at the ballet."

Ella stuck out her tongue, gagging, "Yuck. I am going to go 'Boooooo' when she dances if she's wearing pink," she told them.

"You most certainly will not!" Sharon said sternly. "Emily works very hard to be a good dancer. You may not like the color she has to wear, but you can watch her dance. She looks so pretty when she dances."

"Plus, I have to wear a dress to the ballet. I hate the ballet so far," she complained. Just then, Andy rejoined them after dropping off the luggage and getting their boarding passes.

"Alright," he smiled, "let's go through security," he nodded.

The trio made their way to the security checkpoint, and the security person looked over their information. He gazed down at Ella, "What's your name?" he asked.

"Ella, and this is Marvin," she pointed to her monkey.

"Who are they?" he asked, nodding toward Andy and Sharon, making sure everything was okay with their boarding passes.

Ella shrugged, "Don't know. They are taking me to New York-making me do bad stuff. I don't like it. I like airplanes, but my jail mommy always got me lots of pretzels from them. They said I'd meet my sister, but I don't think I'll like her either."

The security agent looked to Sharon and Andy, who now had a panicked look on each of their faces, "Ella," Sharon said as she leaned down, "he's like a police officer. Be polite and answer his questions."

"No! You're not my real mommy!" she stopped, folding her arms. "I don't want to go to New York and wear a dress. "

"Ella!" Andy bent down now, "Do not start throwing a fit."

"Sir, Ma'am, before you can continue, we need to sort this out," the security agent said.

Andy stood, "She's our daughter!" he exclaimed. "Look at the information."

"Well, it says all of your last names are Flynn, but she's telling me something else. Is your name Ella Flynn?" he asked her.

She shrugged, "They changed it. It didn't used to be."

Sharon's face turned beet red, "Listen, we can explain all this. We are both LAPD detectives; I'm a Captain, and he's a Lieutenant."

"I think all of you need to come with me to sort this out," he nodded, as he waved over additional security. Andy started to protest more, but Sharon patted his arm.

"Listen, no need to make a scene here. We'll just explain it in a minute, wherever we go. We stuck both our badges in my bag, so we can get them," Sharon said as Andy nodded.

The security guards led the three of them to their interview room, and as they were walking, Ella, who was clueless, said, "Ohh, look, they have guns too, just like the ones you have."

The security guards stopped abruptly, and Andy put his hand up, "Listen, we said we're LAPD-please, go ahead and check. She's our daughter," he sighed.

An hour later, and a missed flight, the family made its way through security. Ella seemed to realize she'd gotten everyone in some trouble, and since then, she hadn't said much, not even to Marvin.

"Sorry the airplane left us," she said pouting, as they got some food at the gate, waiting for the next flight in two hours.

"Ella, saying stuff like that to other police can get you in trouble. I know you didn't mean to get us in trouble, but it can-saying stuff like we have guns and I am not your mommy," Sharon explained. "The police here had to do a lot of calling around, even calling Louie to help prove we were your mom and dad and not bad guys. That's a lot of work when you could have told the man we were your mom and dad."

"Ella, we are your parents, and you did have to change your name, but if a policeman asks you questions, answer him," Andy sighed.

The visit to New York was already off to a shaky start, and they hadn't even left L.A.; there was no telling what the actual visit would be like.

"Andy," Sharon said as they sat there waiting for their flight, "We're getting her a passport when we get home. If she has a passport, there will never be a question about who she is."

Andy nodded in agreement, "Yeah, I can't wait to go through security on the flight back home," he sighed.


	14. Chapter 14

Sharon couldn't wait to get off the plane. It had been such a long day, with their issues at the airport at front and center. They had originally been scheduled to land near 5:00 PM, time to get some dinner with Emily and catch up, but now, they were getting in closer to 11 PM. They had told Emily not to meet them; they would go to their hotel and see her in the morning, but Sharon wasn't surprised she was waiting outside of security.

"Hi Mom," she grinned as she ran up to hug Sharon. Andy and Ella were still walking, hand in hand. They'd had to insist Ella hold one of their hands with the crowded airport.

"Oh, sweetie! So glad to see you," she smiled, holding her tight. "You didn't have to come, but thank you."

Emily shrugged, "What else am I doing at 11 PM? Thinking about my non-existent social life?" she chuckled. "Plus, after you told me what happened and what Ella said, I figured you could use a hug and hear me tell you that you are a great mom."

Sharon smiled at her, a slight nod indicating a silent thank you, as Andy and Ella walked up. Andy knew Sharon needed a minute.

"Hi Andy!" Emily said, excited, giving him a hug.

"Emily, good to see you. Sorry our flight was a disaster."

"And you must be Ella and Marvin," she said crouching lower to Ella's height. "Hi, I'm your big sister, Emily."

"I'm Ella; he's Marvin," she stated. "You aren't wearing pink," she noted.

"Nope," Emily noted, looking down. "I don't like a lot of pink. Sometimes I have to wear it, but tomorrow night, my outfit is black."

Ella's eyes got big, "That ballet might be ok."

"Oh, good," Emily acted like she was wiping her brow, "Whew. I was hoping you would still want to come to the ballet. I was going to let you see the costume room and all the cool backstage rooms, but those are only for people who like the ballet."

Ella looked up at Andy, still holding her hand, "She's ok," she nodded.

Andy, Sharon, and Emily all caught each other's gaze and chuckled.

"Ricky is still the best, though, "she said as Emily stood up.

"Oh, really?" she asked growing, I don't know. I grew up with him. He liked to pull my hair when I was little and hide my ballet shoes. I much cooler, plus I'm a girl."

"Do you like hotdogs?" Ella asked.

"Love them," Emily fired back, "and I bet Mom didn't tell you they make the best hotdogs here," she grinned at Andy as he rolled his eyes. "I also bet you dad doesn't eat a lot of hotdogs, just salad stuff."

Ella nodded, as the group started walking. She grabbed Emily's hand and let go of Andy's. Sharon and Andy exchanged a look, and he quickly took hold of Sharon's hand, pulling her close, "You are her mom, you know. A great one at that," he whispered, knowing that was still bothering Sharon. She had been quiet on the plane. She just nodded, gave him a small smile, and gripped his hand tighter.

By the time they had arrived at the hotel, Ella was starting to fade. It had been a long night; they were all tired and in need of a good sleep. Emily promised to make them some breakfast if they wanted to come over the next morning whenever they got up. As much as she would like to have had them all stay with her, her apartment just wasn't fit to hold the three of them. Sharon had stayed there before, and Emily might even be able to hold Sharon and Andy, but with three, it was going to be too tight.

Ella feel asleep almost instantly after they got her into her bed. Sharon and Andy both collapsed onto the other bed in the room.

"What a mess," Andy sighed, as he rubbed his hand over his face, "I can't believe she did that at the airport. I know she's too young to understand that you can't mess around like that and many of the things she said are true-like we have guns and all, but still," he sighed.

Sharon, who had her head resting on his chest hummed, as Andy spoke, "I wanted to wring her neck there, but obviously, that wouldn't have gone over well with the airport security either."

"You know that she loves you, right?" Andy asked, squeezing her shoulder. "I'm sorry she's so forward and demanding. She'll come around."

Sharon hummed again, "I keep reminding myself she needs love, lots of love, just like Rusty did. I wanted to strangle him at times too, but we finally got through to him. I know he irritated you more than once, actually for years, but you worked through it. I am too. I can't expect her to one day drop Linda and accept I'm the replacement. It still just hurts some," she shrugged. Andy squeezed her shoulder again and kissed her head.

"Well, she seemed to like Emily, so maybe this trip will be good for us, a turning point. I know she's going to be staring at us first thing in the morning, wanting to eat, so let's get some rest," he suggested.

Sharon nodded, "I packed extra granola bars-finally got her to eat some of those-and I'll put one by her bed so if she wakes up hungry, it might buy us a little time."

Andy grinned at her, "Such a great mom-amazing wife, brilliant police captain-so glad I married you."

"Me too," she kissed him quickly. "So, does that make this trip our honeymoon?" she joked.

Andy rolled his eyes, "Umm, yeah, sorry about that. We get married, and surprise, here's a kid."

Sharon leaned up, "Wouldn't have it any other way," she winked.

The next morning, Ella slept in a little, partly because she was stuck on LA time, so by the time they got to Emily's it was closer to lunch. Emily had offered to make them breakfast, but they'd told her they wanted to take her to lunch.

"Well, if you are in New York then we need to get pizza," she grinned, as she winked at Andy and Sharon. "Anyone like pizza?"

"I love pizza!" Ella smiled proudly.

"Pizza it is," Andy commented and the group took off toward Emily's favorite pizza place.

"I got tickets to go see the Statue of Liberty," she told them. "I knew Ella hadn't seen it before, and I figured we could do that before I have to get to work."

The group finished their lunch, and they headed to the boat dock for their tour to the Statue of Liberty. Ella was amazed at everything, not throwing a single fit all day. She spent most of the day holding Emily's hand, which Sharon and Andy took as progress. She was happy and excited, enjoying every minute.

"Daddy, look how tall the statue is!" she exclaimed.

"Here, let me get some pictures of you with Mom and your dad, Ella. Then, you can take them to school to show your class what you did on your trip," Emily suggested.

"I want a picture with you," she stomped.

"That's fine," Emily suggested, "but I want some of you with your dad and mom. That way I can put them up in my apartment."

"You are going to put my picture up?" she asked.

"Of course!" Emily grinned. "You are my sister, so I want a picture to show all my friends."

Ella shrugged, "Okay, but I still want a picture with you."

After they spent some of the afternoon at the Statue of Liberty, they headed back toward Emily's apartment to drop her off so she could head to work. Sharon, Andy, and Ella were going to go to the hotel to change and grab some dinner before going to the ballet.

"I don't want you to leave," Ella pouted when they dropped off Emily.

Emily bent down, "I'll miss you a lot, but I'll see you tonight, okay? Come watch me dance. I promise, I'll even blow you a kiss when I'm done. Watch, and at the end, I'll do that. I'll find you in the audience, and I'll send it to you."

Ella's eyes got big, "You can do that?"

"Yup, I can. It will be just for you," Emily smiled and hugged her.

"Mom, Andy, see you later," she hugged both, "Oh, and Ella is staying with me tonight," she grinned. "You at least deserve a break for one night. She'll love hanging with me, and you two can get some time for yourselves. I wasn't sure how she'd take to me, so I wanted to meet her before offering, but I think we'll be fine."

"Oh, Emily, you don't have to do that," Sharon said.

Andy pulled Sharon in and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "Thank you, Emily. It will be good for Ella to spend some time with her sister. You know your mom-protective, but who better to have Ella over for a sleepover than her sister." He winked at Sharon.

Sharon rolled her eyes, "It's scary sometimes how you can read my mind."

"Well, it works in my favor. For example, I know you won't ever get rid of me because I know you are too much in love with me," he grinned.

"If you truly could read minds, you'd know that that was a pretty cheesy line," Sharon said as she and Emily chuckled.

Andy shrugged, "I knew you'd say that, but it got you to laugh, and admit that Ella will be just fine with Emily."

Sharon nodded, as she turned to Emily, "Thank you."

Finally, it was time for the ballet. Ella had gone from hating the idea of wearing a dress, to twirling around in it, excited to show Emily. Sharon packed overnight stuff for Ella to take to Emily's place, and after getting bite to eat in the hotel restaurant, the trio headed to the ballet.

When they arrived, they found their tickets had been flagged, and one of Emily's usher friends came over to escort them, "Ahh, Mr. and Mrs. Flynn," he said, "I'm Tim, a friend of your daughter's."

"I don't know you," Ella looked at him, "I'm their daughter."

Andy smiled at Sharon, gauging her surprise from yesterday's pronouncement of 'not my parents,' and then Andy quickly stepped in, "Ella, he's a friend of Emily's. It's okay. She's our daughter too."

Tim just laughed as he turned to Ella, "You must be Ella. Emily told me all about you, and she showed me some of the pictures you too today. She's a pretty cool big sister. I bet you'll have fun at her apartment tonight. She told me you were coming over for a sleepover."

"Are you coming too?" she asked Tim. Sharon and Andy raised their eyes in surprise.

"Oh, no!" he said, trying not to give Sharon and Andy the wrong idea. "No, it's just for you and Emily. She just told me about it. I am going to show you to your seats if that's okay," he offered.

Andy and Sharon nodded a thank you to him, and before he led them to their seats, he turned as they were walking, "I was asked to bring all of you backstage before so you could see Emily if you like?"

Sharon's eyes lit up, "That would be lovely, Tim. Thank you," she said as she wrapped her arm though Andy's arm. Ella was walking in front of them, behind Tim. Quickly, they arrived in her dressing room, where Ella was amazed at all the costumes.

"Emily!" she yelled, running to her, as Sharon and Andy grinned at her excitement.

"Hey kiddo," she smiled. "Is this costume okay?"

"It's kind of boring, all black, but better than pink," she said honestly.

"Yeah, you're right about that, but I wear what they tell me. You know, like school. I used to go to the same school you go to. You know-like you have to wear the uniform. Well, it's the same here," she said.

"I'm never doing anything where I wear a uniform," she told Emily. "It's boring."

"Yeah, but sometimes cool. I think you'll see tonight. Now, I need to finish getting ready, so Tim's going to take you to your seats, okay?" she told her.

Ella nodded, "Is he your boyfriend?" she leaned in and almost whispered to Emily.

Emily smiled, "Kind of," she told her, "He and I have been friends a long time. He works here at night and does another job during the day. He's really nice. More than anything, he's a nice friend," she whispered as Sharon and Andy watched curiously.

Ella nodded, as she whispered again, "No kissing, right?"

Emily shook her head, "Nope, no kissing-yet. That's why he's kind of my boyfriend, but kind of not."

The group left the dressing room and followed Tim to their seats. When they arrived, Tim turned, "It was really nice to meet all of you. I know Emily's glad you came for a visit. Ella-glad I got to meet you too."

"You didn't meet Marvin," she said turning to Sharon, "Mommy, is Marvin in my bag for Emily's?"

"He is," Sharon said already getting him out, "I'm sure he'll enjoy the ballet."

Ella took Marvin and showed Tim, "Marvin's here to watch too. Bye Tim, and she motioned for him to come closer, saying, "Emily told me you were her boyfriend," but still loud enough for Sharon and Andy to hear. Tim's eyes got large as he stood, and Sharon and Andy just chuckled.

"I'm sorry; we're not-" he started to say, but failed miserably.

"Just friends for now, Tim?" Andy asked, as Tim nodded, "Yeah, we figured so. Know something about that. Glad to meet you. Don't be a stranger, and we'll get all the dirt from Ella and Emily later. You're welcome in LA anytime," he stuck his hand out to shake Tim's hand. Tim stood there, somewhat speechless.

"Tim, we've seen you in photos Emily has texted us from outing after work and all. Then, when you appeared tonight and knew all about us, well, we are detectives. Please watch out for her and treat her well. We trust her," Sharon smiled.

Tim just nodded, "Ok, umm, thanks, and just so you know, I'm an accountant during the day. I just have a second job here to get ahead. Great to meet all of you; I need to get back to work," he nodded.

"He's funny," Ella giggled after he left. "Emily's got a boyfriend," she started singing.

"Ella," Sharon started, "be nice. Emily's allowed to have a boyfriend."

"Yuck," Ella said, "I'm never going to have a boyfriend."

"Let's get that on record," Andy grinned at Sharon, as he clasped her hand in his. They all settled in for the ballet.

Ella fell asleep two thirds of the way through it, but Andy woke her at the end because he knew she wanted to see Emily finish. She was groggy at first until Andy pointed out Emily was almost done, and then Ella sat up, holding Marvin, waiting for Emily to finish.

To her word, Emily blew a kiss, right to Ella, and Ella stood up there, jumping up and down. Andy patted her to sit back down, and noted the couple behind them was laughing.

"I'm sorry," Sharon turned to them once the lights had come up, "She was a little excited."

"You don't see that kind of excitement about the ballet everyday," the man nodded. "It's fine, really. We enjoyed watching her get so excited. Glad she enjoyed it."

"I didn't really like it," Ella said, "I just liked seeing my sister. She blew me a kiss-told me she would."

"Oh, that was your sister up there?" the man asked, looking toward Andy and Sharon.

Sharon nodded, "Yes, our daughter, Emily," as Andy collected their stuff.

"I get to stay at her apartment tonight. Mommy and Daddy have to go back to the hotel, but I get to stay with her. I hope I can stay with her tomorrow night too before we fly back to California."

"Ahh, so came to visit your sister and see her perform. Well, she's very good. Have a great trip," he nodded to them.

Andy nodded back, "Thank you. We're very proud of her," just as Tim arrived again.

"Hi Mr. and Mrs. Flynn, Ella," he smiled, "I'll take you backstage again," he ushered his hand.

"We best be going," Andy nodded to the couple. "Night," and the trio followed Tim again.

Once Emily had finished for the evening, all with Ella by her side, they all left the ballet. Sharon pulled Emily aside for a moment before they left the building, "So, Ella tells us that Tim is a friend," she grinned at Emily.

Emily chuckled, "Yeah, guess nothing is a secret to a five-year-old. We're friends, good ones, and I know you can relate to how that is complicated. Nothing romantic, but maybe someday," she shrugged.

Sharon nodded, "I won't pry, but he seems like a nice young man. I don't know if it's overstepping or awkward, but please feel free to invite him to dinner tomorrow. He mentioned he was an accountant, so I'll leave that up to you."

Emily smiled back at her, "I think he'd like that. No, that's not awkward, or I wouldn't have had him help you tonight. I'll mention it to him."

"Good," Sharon smiled, "Now, are you sure you are okay with Ella?"

"Positive. Go, enjoy your husband. I know for a fact you've been a little busy since you got married, taking on a five-year-old and all."

Sharon kissed her head, "Thank you. I hope things work out as you want with Tim-whatever that means. You know how much Andy and I meant to each other, even when we were just friends."

Emily nodded, and the two rejoined the group, where Andy was talking to Tim and Ella was twirling around in her dress.

"Everyone ready?" Emily asked, and the group started outside. Emily hung back, holding Ella's hand, to chat with Tim about dinner. Sharon grabbed onto Andy's hand, and soon the group split. Tim headed toward his apartment, while Sharon and Andy said good-night to the girls.

"Are you sure we can't take you to your apartment?" Andy asked.

"Andy, we're fine," she smiled. "I do this every night, and Ella and I will be just fine."

"Love you girls," Sharon said then smiling at the two. "Have a good night."

"Bye girls," Andy said kissing both.

Sharon bent down to Ella, "Listen to your sister. Be safe and be kind tonight, okay?"

"Bye Mommy," Ella said, "I'll miss you."

She waved as the two girls headed off, and Andy pulled Sharon into an embrace, "Well, I'd say that's big progress. No real fits today, she likes Emily, and she said she'll miss us. Yeah, this trip is helping a lot."

Sharon smiled as she hummed, "Let's not forget Ella is proving to be a good little detective herself; she did find out about Tim," she winked to Andy.

"Come on; let's go. I think a dessert stop is in order since we've got the evening to ourselves," he smiled.


	15. Chapter 15

"Looks like the girls are doing some shopping this morning," Sharon smiled at Andy, as she finished getting dressed. Andy was already dressed and watching sports while lounging on the hotel room bed.

"Really?" he smiled to her. "Well, that's good to hear."

Sharon smiled, "Yes, Emily told me she would make sure Ella got her requested hotdog for lunch, and we are going to meet them at her apartment around 3:00. We can bring Ella back here to rest a bit and change, and they we are meeting Emily and Tim for dinner at 6:30. That way it isn't too late for Ella to be out tonight."

Andy nodded, "Sounds like a plan. So, Tim's coming? Good. He seemed like a nice guy."

Sharon agreed, smiling, "I think so too. It's good they are friends. I spent a lot of dinners with my best friend before we moved beyond that," she winked.

Andy grinned, "Yeah, and don't forget plenty of family events, so it's good he's coming. Well," he said standing up, "if we are on our own this morning, then I'm taking you shopping. I know we could do any number of museums, but I also know you've been to most on past trips here. So, I'd like nothing more than to just spend the morning with you, watching you shop. We can walk, and talk and I'll even be such a nice guy to get you lunch."

Sharon smiled at him, "Well, that sounds like an offer I can't refuse. Just what do you get out of it?" she grinned.

He shrugged, "Easy-you."

They spent a leisurely morning walking around different parts of New York. Emily texted them a couple of times, reassuring them things were going well. She even sent them a picture of the extremely large hotdog Ella managed to eat, only to send a follow-up text a few minutes later that Ella had eaten a second one. The girl loved hotdogs.

Sharon and Andy arrived to Emily's apartment building before the girls did, so they waited outside for them. Not long after, they spotted the girls walking down the sidewalk, eating pretzels.

"I don't even want to ask how much junk food she's had today," Andy shook his head, chuckling.

"What's crazy is that Emily, the healthy conscious ballerina, loves that stuff too. It's like a binge day for her; watch, at dinner tonight, she'll probably get a side salad, feeling guilty for all she ate today.

Ella hadn't spotted them yet, and when she did, she broke into a full sprint, "Mommy!" she yelled, running up and almost tackling Sharon. Andy glanced to her, noting Sharon's surprised expression. They were both surprised. That was not the embrace she usually got.

"Hi sweetie," she smiled as she kissed her head, "Did you have a good time with Emily?" she asked, as Emily finally caught up.

"Whew!" Emily smiled, "She's worn me out. I'm glad I don't have a show today."

"We had the bestest time!" Ella jumped up and down. "Look, Daddy, we got necklaces!" she grinned, pulling out her new necklace.

Andy bent down to look at it, crouched next to Sharon.

"It says BFF-Best Friends Forever. Emily found a place that had three together-we got one for Nicole too. She told me the girls had to stay together and be best friends."

Andy and Sharon glanced at each other, and then they looked up to Emily. She was smiling too, "We had a good long chat today about a lot of things. I think she's realizing she's got it pretty good with you two now. Hopefully, the 'incidents' are kept to a minimum now."

Sharon stood up speechless, while Andy kissed Ella too, "I love your new necklace, and Nicole will too. That was really nice of you to get necklaces for each other. Your sister is right; you girls do need to stick together. Sisters are a very good thing to have, even if they are big sisters and a lot older."

Ella jumped and spun around, "I'm never going to take it off! Emily said I'm her best friend," she continued to jump and spin on the sidewalk, only stopping when she got dizzy and looked to Sharon, "Mommy, do you have a best friend?"

Sharon smiled warmly, "I do. Daddy is my best friend."

Ella made a twisted face, "Daddy's a boy! He can't be your best friend."

Andy shook his head, "I don't know, Ella. See, Mommy is my best friend. We've been best friends a long time. It's okay for boys and girls to be best friends, and it's okay if you have more than one best friend-like you, Emily, and Nicole."

"Emily, is Tim your best friend too?" Ella asked, turning back to Sharon and Andy, "Emily told me lots about Tim. He's coming to dinner," she giggled, "but Emily said no kissing," she giggled again.

Andy threw up his hands, "Oh, well, that's good to hear," he winked to Emily, "but I'm allowed to kiss your mom, even though she's my best friend. She's also my wife."

Ella shook her head, "No! Yuck," she said as Andy leaned over and kissed Sharon anyway.

"See, it's okay. We're married," Andy said.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Oh, please. You kissed her plenty before that," she grinned.

"Well, let's go inside, and we can get Ella's stuff and let Emily take a nap. I'm sure she needs one after today," Andy chuckled.

Sharon and Andy gathered Ella's things; she was begging them to stay with Emily again tonight, and while they weren't against it, they'd need to get her some clean clothes. They said good-be to Emily, setting a time to meet at the restaurant, and then the went back to the hotel to rest.

Ella didn't make it more than five minutes after returning, and she was fast asleep. Sharon and Andy settled in to relax themselves, partly so they didn't wake her.

"She seems to have turned a corner," Sharon smiled at Andy as they both looked over at Ella sleeping.

"Yeah," he nodded, "I would agree. Hopefully, when we get back to LA, she'll continue on like this. I'm really glad she likes Emily so much. Hopefully, she'll grow more attached to Rusty too. I don't know why she's been hesitant to interact with him, but maybe she was just nervous with everything."

Sharon hummed, almost asleep, and soon, the trio found it was time for dinner.

Dinner went well; Emily and Tim were already there when Sharon, Andy, and Ella arrived.

"Hi Emily!" Ella ran up and threw her arms around her, hugging her.

"Hi kiddo," she grinned. Tim shook Sharon and Andy's hands again, and the group made their way into the restaurant.

"I want to sit by Emily," Ella announced, "Tim you can sit by her too."

Everyone chuckled, and once the seating was established, they began talking while they looked over the menu. Andy and Sharon were glad to get to know Tim; to Ella, she was getting to know Emily and Tim at the same time, so it wasn't anything odd to her, but Sharon and Andy really wanted to chat with the young man. They both noticed the jokes, looks, and stories the two told, all involving each other. Sharon winked at Andy; it reminded her a lot of two others who had started as friends.

"I don't like that we have to go home tomorrow," Ella announced, as she started to pout.

" I know it is hard, Ella, but I will have to come and see you soon," Emily smiled. "You know, I never had a sister, and all of a sudden, I have two!"

"Ella, I have three sisters," Tim said. "They are older than me too, just like you so we are alike."

"You do?" Ella asked as Sharon and Andy were interested as well.

"I do. When I was little, I didn't like it because they always wanted to boss me around, but now, it's great. We talk all the time, and I feel I know a lot about girls growing up with them. You are pretty lucky to have brothers and sisters. I never had a brother," Tim added.

"I think I like living with you, Daddy and Mommy," Ella turned to them. Sharon smiled brightly at Andy, and he winked at Sharon. It was the first time she'd said anything like that.

"We love having you live with us, Ella. So much. We never realized how much we could love you, your sister, and your brothers all together," he had leaned down and told her.

"Ella, you know, you helped bring our family even closer together. I know it's a bit strange sometimes that your sisters and brothers are so much older, and that Rusty is the only one you see all the time, but we all love you very, very much," Sharon said, tears welling up.

"Cool," Ella shrugged, "Do they have hotdogs and ice cream here?" she asked, now satisfied with everything she had just heard.

The rest of the evening went well, with the group enjoying each other at dinner. Emily and a Tim hugged everyone before they went their separate ways.

"Mom, I think she's adorable-a handful, yes," she chuckled, "but, I think we turned a new corner. You know she can come back to my place. Tim was going to come over to watch a movie, but it's no big deal," Emily said.

Sharon looked over to Ella asleep on Andy's shoulder and smiled back at Emily, "Thank you, honey. We will take her back to the hotel with us. You have been so wonderful with her. You go and enjoy your evening with Tim. Hold onto him. He seems like a great friend, and it's obvious you two are close, and he cares deeply for you. I think you feel the same?" Sharon said, as Emily smiled, nodded, and blushed. "Good, then you two go. We've got Ella. She's our responsibility."

"She's my sister too, Mom," Emily gripped Sharon's hand, "At first, I was worried this could destroy everything, but you are right. She's brought our whole family together. I am proud of you, Mom, for not running from this," she hugged Sharon.

Sharon nodded almost with tears, "Thank you," she hugged Emily tighter,"I love you. Be safe and kind. We will talk soon."

Emily and Tim left, as Andy out his free hand around Sharon, "Come on, gorgeous. We've got to get Sleeping Beauty her to bed. It's been a great trip, and I keep going back to what you said-Ella, in a strange way-rounded out our whole crazy, family, joining us forever," he grinned.

 **There will be one more chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the amazing reviews to this story. I have appreciated them all. While I believe this story could go on and on, with tales of Ella and the team, I decided it was best to end it here. I hope the last chapter is up to the same standard as the rest have been. I'm already working on an idea for a new story, so stay tuned. Thanks again! Enjoy!**

 **Epilogue**

The back door slammed shut, and Sharon jumped, almost spilling her tea. She and Andy were having some tea, and he chuckled, knowing the source of the slam.

"Hey guys!" Ella waved as she walked into the kitchen, acting like it was perfectly natural for her to be there at 3:00 in the afternoon.

"Hi sweetheart," Sharon smiled, "Not that we aren't happy to see you, but what are you doing here?"

"Yeah," Andy looked at his watch, "shouldn't you be in class? Don't tell me you are skipping class; you've only got a couple more weeks until finals."

"No," she smiled, as she bent down and kissed Andy on the cheek and repeated to Sharon, "I'm not skipping class. Professor cancelled it today, and it's a good thing. I think I left my softball cleats here-my favorite ones, and I wanted to wear them for the game today."

"Last home game," Andy smiled, "can't believe it."

"Me either!" Ella smiled, "You're coming tonight, right Dad? Mom?"

"Of course," Sharon smiled, as she stood up to move around the kitchen, "Have we missed a home game this season?"

"This season?" Andy jumped in, "Let's try-have we missed a home game the last three years? No, we haven't. We've been the parents of the year, making every home game, and I'm sure next year, your big senior year, we'll make every single home game then too," he winked at Sharon.

Ella smiled, "I know; you guys are great-my own cheering section. I'm just excited. I'm starting at second base again tonight."

"Oh, great, sweetie! We're so proud of you," Sharon smiled. "I think Emily and Tim are planning to come with the kids tonight."

Ella nodded, "Yeah, she texted me earlier to tell me. Nicole said she and Dean were coming too. I swear though, that if the boys come and heckle me again, I might just have to take them out."

"Hey," Andy nodded, "Be nice. Your nephews are proud of you too, even if they act like-I don't know-20 something year old guys. You should know how many of them act, all the guys you've dated and all."

Ella nodded and smiled, "It's just so weird explaining to my friends that the boys aren't teasing me because they want to date me, but because we're related. Then, trying to explain they are older than I am, but my nephews," she shook her head. "Anyways…."

"I seem to recall a time when you wouldn't let us tear you away from playing with them," Sharon shrugged looking at Andy. "Might you remember that, Andy? Remember when she was oh maybe ages 6-12 that she actually liked Nicole and Dean's boys? Then, one day, suddenly, they were annoying nephews," she shrugged.

Andy chuckled, "Vaguely," he winked to Sharon, "She might have gotten annoyed at them once or twice as a teenager. Now, look at the trio-the boys are out of college, and you are a year away from finishing. We have six more grandchildren with Ricky's three, Emily's two, and Charlie's one. Time flies."

"It does," Sharon smiled, "It seems like not long ago, you were standing over there licking the door to the backyard."

"Eeewww," Ella made a face, "Mom, I did not do that."

Sharon laughed, "Oh, you did. My favorite though-you telling me I wasn't the boss of you."

Andy laughed, "Oh, that was a good one. You tried to get me to agree Sharon wasn't in charge, and you about couldn't believe it when I told you that not only was she in charge at home, she was even in charge of me at work."

Ella sighed and rolled her eyes, "Yeah, let's just keep digging up old stories. How come you never tell old stories like that about the other kids?"

Sharon laughed as she turned to Andy, "Oh, we do. You just were the last one, the freshest stories in our mind. Plus, we got to share all those stories with each other. The other kids-well, we only raised Rusty together from when he was 15 on. We've had you together the longest," she smiled.

"Speaking of, so Dad, I got a call from Linda," she turned to her parents to gauge their reaction.

Sharon's eyes got wide, as she glanced to Andy. He put down his cup of tea and looked to Ella, "You did? When?"

"A couple days ago," she shrugged, "I wanted to tell you in person-didn't seem like the type of think to just text you. She's out now. Haven't heard a single word from her in what? 16 years? Suddenly, she calls me and asks how 'her baby' is doing? Can you believe that? She had the nerve to ask me that. I asked her if she got the letters I first sent her-that you and Mom sent to her in prison. She said she did and get this-forgot to write back. Hello? You are in prison-what else do you have to remember? Wow Dad, she was a real winner. She wasn't the brightest one in the box, that's for sure. I almost couldn't believe she was calling."

Sharon looked concerned, "What did she want? How did she get your number?"

"She's in Kentucky with Grandma and Grandpa. I guess she called them when she got out, and they paid for a bus ticket, so she went there. They gave her my number," Ella explained.

Andy and Sharon nodded, and Andy jumped back in, "So, as your mom asked, what did she want?"

Ella shrugged, "Not much. Grandma caught her up on me-that I was in college studying to be a physical therapist, playing college softball. I think she was really surprised you and Mom had raised me, and also that I was still talking to Grandma and Grandpa. I told her that you always made sure I could talk to them, and I even told her that you and Mom took me to Kentucky to see them a few times growing up. She even asked if you were still alive-her words, 'He was so old to start. Can't believe he's still around.' Yeah, I told her off for saying that about you," she frowned.

"So, she's living in Kentucky now, and she wanted to catch up?" Sharon asked trying to figure this out.

"So old!" Andy was stuck on that. "Okay, I might be old, but I'm not dead! Sharon, we still walk everyday. Provenza is older and still alive."

"Andy!" Sharon snapped him out of it, "Focus," she nodded to Ella. He refocused.

"Sorry," he mumbled, "So, what does she want? To see you?"

Ella shook her head, "I don't think so. She really didn't seem that interested in seeing me. Just asked if I had a good life. Asked if I liked living with you and mom. She even asked who Mom was-tried telling me she-Linda- was my mom. I told her she might be my mother-gave birth to me, but she gave that up when she decided breaking the law repeatedly was a good idea."

"Ella, we saw this with Rusty a bit. If she's reaching out, it doesn't hurt to try. It's up to you, but don't shut her out if she wants to get to know you now," Sharon added.

Ella nodded, "I know. I didn't tell her she couldn't call me or anything, but she didn't sound like she wanted to call back much. She said she'd seen all my school pictures you sent Grandma every year, and she thought I was pretty."

"Ella, you're beautiful," Sharon smiled, "not just pretty."

Ella blushed, and Andy added, "You're beautiful like your mom-there," he pointed to Sharon. "I only surround myself with beautiful women. It's my trademark," he winked.

Sharon chuckled, "Please," she shook her head.

"Well, we will see, but she mentioned she already had a boyfriend. How is she out a few weeks and has some boyfriend? I don't have a boyfriend!" Ella sighed.

"That's right," Andy nodded, "Your mom and I will keep it that way. They come near our little girl, and we bring out the badges, even if we are retired," he winked.

"Yeah, is it any wonder why my dating life was non-existent in high school? I had the two of you, Uncle Louie, really the whole team, ready to take out any guy I might date, so I've just decided I won't tell you about any future dates," she grinned.

Sharon nodded, "That's probably a good strategy. We don't need to hear about them from you anyway. We have Tim," she smiled.

Ella's eyes popped open, as she looked between her parents, "Tim? He told you? Oh, I'll give him a piece of my mind. Ugh!"

"Yeah, he might have mentioned that while he, Emily, and the kids are coming tonight, his new junior associate was coming too-one that he'd introduced to you, and that the two of you were going out after your game-again, which led your mom and I to interrogation. We learned you've been out with Sean a few times now. So, we can't wait to meet Sean tonight at the game," Andy smiled.

Ella closed her eyes and shook her head, "Fine. Sean is 25. Yes, he's Tim's new junior associate, master's degree in accounting. From Montana, and he went to school out here. He's a nice guy, and he's not bothered that I play college softball or that my parents are retired police detectives. Tim assured him that our family wasn't that bad. I mean, he's been around it since I have, so," she shrugged. "Tim even said if you were really that bad, he and Emily never would have moved back to California to raise their family. Please be nice to him; I do sort of like him. We're friends."

Sharon and Andy smiled at each other, "Ahhh, good friends, here that Andy," she winked.

"I married my best friend, kiddo," he winked to her.

"Haha, yes, I know. Let me go find my stuff. I think my shoes are upstairs in my room," she said as she left the kitchen, trying to get out of that conversation.

"Wow, full of information, today-we learn Linda has been sprung, and she finally confesses about Sean," Sharon smiled.

Andy nodded, "Yeah, although, a few dates doesn't add up to what Tim said of several months, but again, they aren't dating," he chuckled.

"It's not a date-then they aren't dating. Dinner, movies, events together. I have no idea where she would have learned that type of behavior," Sharon smiled as she shrugged.

"Where's Rusty? He and Nicole were good at sorting that out for us. They could do the same for Ella. You know, siblings helping one another," he added.

"Oh, that does remind me-Rusty and Gus are in San Francisco this weekend with Ricky, Krista, and the kids. Did I tell you that? I couldn't remember if I did. So, they won't be around this weekend," she added.

"So, you are telling me that all the kids have plans for the weekend? No one is coming here?" he asked.

Sharon nodded, "Just you and me. Not many weekends like that, well, except that we are having dinner with Provenza and Patrice tomorrow, and we are picking them up for the game tonight. Provenza said he couldn't miss Ella's last home game. It's a surprise for her, so don't tell her."

Andy chucked, "She'll be thrilled. Still to this day-Ella is the only one, other than Patrice, who gets away with calling him Louie. I can still remember the countless times we'd bring her to work after school, and she'd just strut into the Murder Room like she-a six-year-old, owned the place calling over, 'Hi Louie!' Oh, the team just loved that," he chuckled, "I can't believe Patrice convinced him to move to that retirement community. Please tell me we aren't eating there."

Sharon shook her head, as she covered her mouth from laughter, "No, we are picking them up to go out. You're one to talk. You and Provenza are now those old guys playing shuffle board on the beach twice a week."

"Hey," Andy shrugged, "Good exercise."

Sharon glared at him, "What? For the eyes? Don't think I am not aware that you and Provenza go down to the beach to watch all the girls."

"Not me! Those girls are Ella's age! No! Honestly, I just go to keep Provenza out of trouble. Guy attracts trouble," he nodded.

Sharon chuckled, "Oh, and you don't?"

"Found them!" Ella announced, as she walked into the kitchen and plopped down in the chair, "Any food? I'm starving, and I've got to head to the game."

Sharon smiled as she stood again, "Your dad made muffins this morning. I'll get you a couple."

"Yeah, and they are even healthy," he shook his head, making a face, "you know, because your mom made me bake healthy ones."

"Well, Dad, it's kept you around, so I will agree with Mom," she smiled as she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "You know-talking to Linda the other day-it just made me realize how lucky I was to have you and Mom as my parents," she smiled. "I never really thought about it, but thank you for taking me in. I never would have had this amazing life with three brothers and two sisters, not to mention all their families too. I wouldn't have become this amazing softball player going to a fantastic college. I wouldn't be applying for graduate programs in physical therapy, and I wouldn't have you two. I can't tell you how I appreciate you taking me in."

"Taking you in?" Sharon questioned, "You were our daughter. We fought to get you, and we'd do it all over again."

Andy nodded in agreement, "Completely agree with your mother. Plus, your mother still might be dragging her old feet on agreeing to marry me if you hadn't been in the picture."

"Andy!" Sharon said admonishing him, "That's not true. Ella, I still remember that day we learned about you. Yes, you might have come crashing into our lives, turning things upside down, but sweetheart, every minute-every tantrum, everything-it was worth it. We love you, all your brothers and sisters so much, and I know your dad and I couldn't have asked for a better life."


End file.
